Sylvan Lake residents have turned their Christmas lights back on, as a show of solidarity during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The world has changed and terms such as self-isolation and social distancing have become the norm.
However, staying home can be lonely and, as the term suggests, isolating. This week, the idea of spending the time at home as if it were Christmas once again surfaced.
The Facebook group Meanwhile in Sylvan Lake suggested residents should turn on their Christmas lights as a social distancing exercise.
Wednesday night, in the middle of March, Christmas returned to Sylvan Lake as many residents turned on their holiday lights still set up on homes.
Tara Boyd, one of the group members to suggest the movement, said, “It would make for an uplifting social distancing activity to drive or walk around and check out the lights.”
Jan Norman, another group member, said by turning on Christmas lights in town, it will help to cheer up neighbours in difficult times.
Photos of holiday lights are being shared using the hashtag Share The Sparkle.
Andrew MacDonald is one of many now sharing the lights on his home. In his post, he said turning on the light wasn’t about what was trending on social media.
“… it’s about giving hope and comfort in dark times. It’s about us coming together as a community, a province and as a country to say ‘we will beat this, and that there is light at the end of the tunnel,’” MacDonald wrote on Facebook.