Courage in the age of Covid

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Dear Hey you! Covid: Please GO AWAY! I’ve had enough of you and your insidious presence. Lurking in the background everywhere. Masked or not, we are vulnerable to your incursion. I am tired of tiptoeing through life. I want to feel the joy of going out and about without worry about who will cross my path and breathe you out into my presence. I want to meet and congregate and share time and space with others without concern for the danger you present. Alas. You are dangerous, Covid. And you continue to lurk in the corners and spread in the open. So I will continue to live with caution, to avoid the crowds, and to mask (in the age of Covid, a noun that has become a verb).

It is a fine line between friendly and foolhardy, between cautious and captive, and I walk that line. Every day. Once the real cold comes, with snow and wind and ice, then I will be truly tested. For now, I go out and about, but I am trepidatious and I wonder, constantly, about how sensible I am being: Should I take the stairs rather than the elevator? Should I really go to that meeting? Attend that social event? What is the host’s protocol? What is there to enjoy at a party when I am masked but others are not and would it be more enjoyable to attend a masquerade ball (in French, “bal masqué”) where the very purpose is to wear a mask? I have no such invitation, of course, only routine outings to replenish the groceries and such, which takes enough courage as it is, caution and care being too oft characterized as foolhardy by those who venture forth with neither.

Then, in the news the other day, I saw two young women (unmasked themselves) in a public place, taking a public stand (unmasking an other), and I thought, Now, there’s courage that I don’t have. Representing Just Stop Oil, they threw tomato soup onto a painting (that is protected by glass) and then glued one hand each to the wall: “What is worth more, art or life?” said one of the activists…“Is it worth more than food? More than justice? Are you more concerned about the protection of a painting or the protection of our planet and people?”

If they can find it in them to do that for their principles — and for the planet — then I can find the courage in me to live larger than I have been. No, I won’t be foolhardy. Yes, I will be masked. And, yes, I will find joy in the doing. For that, for me, is courage in the age of Covid.

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Land acknowledgement: I respectfully recognize that I live on the original lands of Anishinaabe, Cree, Oji-Cree, Dakota and Dene peoples, and on the homeland of the Métis Nation.

Photo by Loan on Unsplash

Comments

  1. AnnOctober 18, 2022 at 4:26 AM

    Everything you said is true, but somehow my inner anchorite doesn’t mind staying in for these past months. I’ve made two incursions into Trader Joe’s, my favorite specialty market. That’s about it. Until this Thursday when Julie and I fly to Texas. It’s been three years since I saw my sons and there families. So masked and intrepid I shall leave my safe place for the COVID infested world. I’ve had the whole course of the vaccine including the latest booster. I’m depending on my strong immigrant/pioneer DNA to carry me safely there and back

    Or not.

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousOctober 18, 2022 at 6:43 AM

    I understand some of your frustration, and I hate wearing a mask. But I do it, for me, particularly for Victor at 96 with his COPD and to help others be a responsible member of community. But I hate it. However we haven’t had colds for two seasons, or flu or bronchitis, a yearly event for V. And I do hug friends, kiss my family and rejoice that we are all well. Starting retirement in the middle of the pandemic is hard but you have a plan and wi know you will stick to your goals. - Celia

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