Yes, like any good nerd, I’ve probably seen everything the MCU has produced, more than once. Lately, channels like TNT and USA have been running mini-marathons of some of my favorite Marvel movies: Avengers: Age of Ultron, Doctor Strange, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2, etc. Even though I’ve seen them several times, watching them again during the days I’m home from work is helping me cope with the current conditions of the world we live in.

This will probably sound like a corny after-school-special statement, but I’m going to say it anyway. Marvel movies are all about people coming together to work through seemingly impossible situations. Sure, some of those people have super powers, but the point is, they’re working together for a cause. I wish I could say the same about our society, especially here in America. Every time I hear someone mention their reasons for not wearing a mask, I wish I had super powers myself (though it’s probably a good thing I don’t, because a lot of people would get hurt). It’s almost sad: all this talk about how ‘we’re in this together’, and all of us can’t seem to do a simple thing: wear a mask.

Fortunately, when the real world gets to be too much, I can still turn to the MCU for escape and perhaps, some inspiration. I keep telling myself, this will all be over soon, and things will return to normal. They could return to normal much sooner, if we really were all in this together.