This Physically Distanced Porch Dance Party Makes For A Gorgeous Family Visit

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Everyone’s missing someone. Partners, coworkers, friends, baristas, the smiling woman you occasionally see on your bus commute to work. Staying at home, which is the best way to slow the spread of COVID-19 , means temporarily doing without those connections that sustain us. For many of us, it’s missing family members outside of our household that is the hardest. It’s strange and sad, not being able to hug  our parents.

But one family from Maryland spontaneously found a way around this loneliness: physically distanced dancing. 

Alisa Hyman , a freelance writer and editor, still checks in on her parents. She and her 17-year-old son, Michael, often drive to her mom and dad’s home, just under a mile away, to check on them and see how they’re doing. Her father is 83 and her mother is 74, and as we know, seniors are more vulnerable to getting sick during the pandemic.

On Thursday, Hyman and her son were doing their routine check-in. But this time, all her parents wanted to do was party.

“COME ON, POP POP, BOOGIE!” Hyman can be heard yelling in a viral video capturing the moment, which she posted to Twitter and Instagram. “THAT’S WHAT I LIKE!”

Really, it’s what we all like!

In the joyful video, even the teenager, Michael, gets into it, jamming on the street on the driver’s side of the car. He even chose the song, Maze and Frankie Beverly’s “Joy and Pain” from 1980.

The wholesome clip has been watched almost 60,000 times on Instagram, and has over 10.1 million views on Twitter. And in a time where everyone’s feeling kind of down, it’s lifting spirits. 

Aside from being really adorable, and a reminder to check in with those we love, the video also proves something else: a reminder that even when everything feels like it sucks, you can still find those moments of joy.

Sometimes, all you need is a little dance break .