RSJ alum recounts his COVID-19 journey in "Field Notes from a Pandemic"

Ethan Lou was visiting his ailing grandfather in China in January 2020. While planning to visit family and friends across Asia and Europe, his plans were impacted by the coronavirus. While he continued his travels, Lou ultimately found himself quarantining in Germany at the height of the pandemic.

"Field Notes from a Pandemic: A Journey Through a World Suspended (external link) " is a raw and personal account of the experiences Lou (RSJ ’15) faced, as well as the impact the pandemic has on the international community.

What motivated you to write your book now, rather than in the future after the pandemic is over?

Well, when the book comes out, that’s a decision made by the publisher. But I think I definitely went on a bit of a trip, and it wasn’t thetrip that I was seeking. All the experiences were definitely very jarring. So, the reason for writing this book is that writing to me is a bit of a therapeutic and cathartic process. 

If you’ve read Harry Potter, they have this device called the Pensieve. It’s like a bowl, and with your wand you can take a thought out of your head and put it into the device. In doing so you clear your head. For me, writing is that kind of exercise. Writing this book, it helped me relax, it helped me deal with all of these issues.

I found when I was reading your book, I actually had to take a few breaks, just because it made the reality of the pandemic so evident. Were there any kind of emotional implications you had while reflecting on your experiences?

Yeah, particularly my grandfather. I think it’s one thing to have his condition described to you by your father, and it’s another thing altogether to see him in person. Just a year ago he was able to sit upright. But this time that I was with him, he was not even strong enough for a wheelchair. 

I actually feel very fortunate that I was in China when I was, despite the circumstances. If I arrived just a day or two afterward, I would not have been able to see my grandfather at all, because that was when the seniors residence kicked everyone out. So, all in all, I feel quite lucky to have seen him for what is likely the last time.

Compared to what you’ve published in the past, did your writing process differ at all for this book?

Oh yeah, absolutely. This is actually my second book, the first to be published, but the second that I’ve written. This is definitely more personal and raw, because it was put together in a short period of time. A lot of it draws from what I am feeling and what I’m thinking, and it draws on issues that I’ve pondered for a while. This was definitely more of a personal process than anything I’ve written in the past. 

I’m very grateful to my editor, he pulled out more of the personal stuff. I think, as a journalist, many of us have an aversion to writing about ourselves. 

Another issue that you talked about was the topic of interdependence between countries around the world that was really highlighted at the beginning of the pandemic. In your opinion, have we as an international community learned anything from this experience, and will we change anything in the future?

I’ve definitely learned a lot and it might not be the best lesson. As I wrote in the book, a simple toaster requires some four hundred different components sources from all over the world. Our world has become so complicated now that everything we use, everything we eat, the shirts on our backs, the keyboard beneath our fingers is the result of the labour of thousands spread around the world who may not know each other, because we are so interconnected. China’s integration with the world economy is four times as large as its integration during the time of SARS. Small shifts nowadays can ripple into a tidal wave. 

I think through this, we will realize how vulnerable that has made us. Sourcing components from all over the world was largely for the pursuit of efficiency: you buy materials, and as a company you focus on doing one thing, which makes you a much better company as well. We have learned that deficient efficiency has come at the cost of resiliency. 

[In response to SARS], Germany, for example, reacted by barring exports of protective gear. A lot of countries did the same in Europe even though the EU is supposed to have a common market. The U.S. did it to Canada. When this is over, I think we will remember that there was a time that we were vulnerable when everybody started looking after themselves. 

With the second wave of COVD-19 coming to Canada and the resurgence of cases, after your experience travelling during the pandemic and quarantining in Germany, is there anything you think we should be doing differently at home?

In terms of the Canadian response, what I feel is lacking is definitely the issue of federal will. We have ten provinces and everyone is doing something different. When you see Justin Trudeau during his press conferences every day, he is literally begging and pleading with the premiers to do things and nobody’s really listening. And the cities are doing their own things as well. 

That clearly is decentralization. They say absolute power corrupts and that’s why we don’t have absolute power. But I think there are certain things that require nimbleness and fast responses.

Ultimately, what do you want readers to take away from your book?

I think a great part of it focuses on the pains of the past and how they have affected us. And the conclusion is that a great part of the modern world is shaped from the place of the past. 

There used to be a time when medieval governments didn’t really have a big role in their citizens’ lives; they collected taxes and when war came, they conscripted their men, but that was about it. But with the [Bubonic] Plague, they started to take note of people’s health, they started recording people’s movements, they started monitoring them, putting people into a central database. They started enforcing their borders. The measures used to deal with the Plague by medieval governments evolved into the modern state that we are today. 

Every time there is a plague, this gets reinforced. During the plague of London, that was when the concept of classical liberalism was born. Cholera and typhoid in the nineteenth century gave us sort of the urban planning we see today. Every time there is a crisis, governments are improving. All the pandemics of the past, some good has come with them. I know that this period might feel harsh and depressing, but I think out of this might be something positive. We might be going toward a more progressive society.