The oldest among us in Generation Y grew up in the early days of the digital age, the youngest among us were still in our diapers when the severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars) hit Singapore. 

In the last two decades, our generation has gone through a whirlwind of forest fires, protests around the region, a trade war and now, a pandemic.

World events usually shape the zeitgeist of a generation but what will the coronavirus make of us? 

In the past few months, life as I knew it has changed. 

For me, classes and Friday night drinks have taken place on Zoom. I took my last examination as an undergraduate online. 

And slowly, as the graduating class cancelled our graduation trips and celebrations plans, we also saw the next phase of our lives falling out of our hands.

My original plan after graduation was to rest for a bit and take my time finding a job. I wanted to take a short break after 16 years of studying and thought I was privileged enough to afford that. But now I’m not sure if that was the best decision.

My parents own an event management firm and since Singapore announced the first case of Covid-19 in January, clients have been calling in to cancel or postpone events. 

By mid-March, they had no more gigs and that also meant no income. They could not qualify for the self-employed person income relief scheme either as their yearly income exceeded the limit.

As they still had to pay for some fixed costs such as loans and rental fees, they joined me on a job hunt. It was the first time they had had to look for work in 30 years.  

It was hard for me to see them out of work. I want to help but what can I do? My sister is sitting for her A-Levels this year, so she’s also reliant on our parents. 

While there’s money set aside to tide over tough times, it’s no fun living in a deficit. 

My parents' three-days-a-week part-time delivery job they found in late April will have to do for the weeks to come. 

In February, some of my friends started applying for jobs and attending job interviews. But most of them did not manage to secure anything due to the economic fallout from the Covid-19 crisis. 

As for me, I must have sent about 20 job applications in recent weeks. 

With job openings scarce, I found myself applying for a vast variety of jobs, including some that I might not be qualified for, such as those that require at least a year’s working experience or a background in healthcare which I don’t have. 

Not surprisingly, nothing has come of them.

The Government recently announced that it will create 21,000 traineeships for young Singaporeans and permanent residents. 

A couple of my friends and I have applied for these through our university’s faculty office only to receive replies that it is overwhelmed with submissions and would take time to get back to us.

I sometimes wonder what I could have done better or what makes me less employable than those who have been able to secure a job despite the uncertain economic situation. 

The sense of helplessness is unsettling. Some of my friends and I feel like we are in a kind of rut, especially during the circuit breaker when we are stuck at home, something we normally would not do for more than two days straight. 

There is only so much Instagram-scrolling or binge watching of Netflix shows that we can indulge in at a time. 

Ever since I learned how to read, the “strawberry generation” has been the term used by older folks to describe me and my peers. 

We are easily bruised and when the hard times come, “then we will know”, they frequently said.

I guess our situation now is that hard time. But it is up to us to rise to the challenge and to make better use of our time.

While we cannot control world events, we can control what we make of it.

Indeed, many of us saw the circuit breaker as an opportunity to learn a new skill or finish up something we have long procrastinated on. 

And somehow, as time expands within our four walls, I see many of us going an extra mile that we otherwise would not have.

Some of my friends have volunteered to help out at community centres to distribute masks. 

My friends Wan Qing and Victor set up a donation drive for extra laptops to help students who did not have one for their home-based learning. 

My friend Tiana and her family put together some cash to buy food for foreign workers and another friend Alvina volunteered to give free tuition online.

I think that it’s very easy for our generation to get caught up in our own progress and success, but in times like these, I’m reminded of how much we care for our community and society too. 

As for me, the virus has made me realise how unpredictable life can be. To keep my spirits up, my friends and I meet every Friday on Zoom to catch up, review our resumes together and prepare each other for job interviews.

To help ease the burden of my parents, I hope to get the cashier job I was recently interviewed for but if that fails, I hope I can contribute my time somewhere else. I certainly will grab any opportunity that comes my way.

We are still riding out the pandemic and I guess it will be some time before more can be said about how it will shape our generation. 

While we might not have to experience the aftermath of a world war or separation from Malaysia, I think like our elders, we too can tide through tough times. What other choice do we have? 

How we adapt to this crisis might shape us more than the realities that the virus has forced us to confront about financial security, health and lifestyle changes.

A lot of us are still at the beginning stages of carving a life of our own and I guess a silver lining to this is that we are forced to toughen up early. 

We will experience a lifetime of unprecedented crises but if we can adapt now, we will not be so easily bruised in the future.

The strawberry generation could well become tougher than what some give us credit for. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Lauren Ong, 22, has just completed her Bachelor’s degree in psychology at the National University of Singapore.