Families, schools, worship services, work places—-these and other communal gatherings have been upended by Covid-19.

In some cases, the results are disastrous—death and sickness, overloaded hospitals, domestic violence, closed businesses, and silent music halls.

Yet despite all the trauma, a few serendipitous sprouts have poked their heads above the misery.

A few families are dealing with closed schools and remote learning for their offspring by banding together to share teaching and child care in small joinings, more easily controlled for the virus.

The number of multi generational households has grown. Not all households profit by coming together—some families have deeply-rooted problems. Nevertheless, more than a few have found unexpected joys as they embrace what was the norm until the past century or so.

New ways of worship emerge from lock downs. No longer tied to services at a particular place and a particular time, some have found they enjoy tuning in to a prerecorded service at a time of their choosing and in whatever casual dress they prefer. Zoom meetings, while not ideal, do allow small groups to share as well, again from the comfort of their homes.

Surveys find a significant number of those able to keep their jobs by working remotely would prefer not to return full time to an office when the pandemic passes. Most say they’d like to spend at least part of the week working at home. Less days at the office might mean less child care problems, not to mention less commuting costs and possibly less pollution.

As so often happens, a crisis is can be an opportunity for creative change. Maybe we’ll discover ways to heal a society whose members have become all too remote from each other.