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How ‘Social Pods’ Can Help Families Find Joy Again
In areas where the coronavirus pandemic has waned enough for real reopenings, families are trying to bring some happiness back into their lives
It started with a hike. My nine-year-old hadn’t seen her best friend — or any friend — in months, so in early June we decided an outdoor activity where everyone could stay six feet apart would be all right. The day was an unequivocal success: Sure, it was hard for my daughter not to hug her friend, hold hands, or whisper conspiratorially, but just being around another kid for a few hours made her happy in a way I hadn’t seen in months.
Now we’ve decided to form a “pod” with that same family. Our daughters are best friends, we’ve all spent a lot of time and vacationed together before, and so we jumped at the chance to broaden who we consider family.
Pods have gained traction throughout the country: The idea being that you expand your isolated immediate unit to a small number of trusted friends or family members. You can go to each other’s homes, hang out without masks, eat together, play games — socialize as normal — because you trust your pod is taking the same precautions you are. (Also because a pod is small, if someone does get…
