HELLO JI!

A WORD (OR TWO HUNDRED) FROM THE EDITOR

Image credit: ATOMS on Unsplash.

It’s election season and the province of Ontario is open for business at full capacity. It’s prom season, too, but a question mark hangs over the rite of passage. To mask or not to mask?

There are cartoon strips devoted to virtual proms, but it is no laughing matter for thousands of students.

A friend recalls her family’s experience at a citizenship ceremony when the world was in the grip of another SARS wave, back in 2003. “We were told there would be no shaking of hands,” she says. “I understood, on an intellectual level, but I felt cheated, all the same. An important component had been cut out of a celebratory experience.”

In her June 2021 column Dr Vicki Bismilla wrote about broken trust. “I personally feel that I may never ever be able to travel or go out into a crowd ever again without wearing a mask. That for me is broken trust, a wariness of people, not knowing who in the present or in the future is a transmitter of known and unknown viruses.”

Many of us identify with the feeling. I feel rude, as though I am announcing to my neighbour that I suspect her of breathing infection in my face as we step away from each other while out for a walk.

Once upon a time, long, long ago, kids would “spit and shake” to seal a promise. One kid would spit in his palm and stick it out. The other would do the same and both would exchange a firm handshake. I remember reading this in books like Tom Sawyer and going ewww. But something in me resonated with the bond being formed and thus sealed. I was reminded of that while watching the latest remake of The Secret Garden. Mary Lennox and Dickon do the same in this tale of magic and mystery.

But today, elbow bumps are more common.

Once upon a time, until not so long ago, children were encouraged to share. Give your friends your toys, lend them your books. A recent cartoon strip had a woman expressing amazement that she spent a lifetime dipping into shared bowls of bar nuts with no adverse reactions.

Today, everything is wiped clean and sanitized and is still out of bounds. From school supplies to playground equipment, it’s like everything is plastered with ‘Do not touch’ signs.

Just as we were cautiously celebrating being done with those times, optimistic that while we will continue to be mindful of not spreading infections, friendly hugs would be back, case counts went up. They are down again, somewhat, but my family and friends are urging each other to stay safe and continue doing everything that we were beginning to feel silly about doing with everyone saying COVID was over and done with. After a brief lull, everyone knows someone who has tested positive.

This is not the time to let our guards down. There’s hope, with the fourth shots being rolled out, but we’re not quite there yet.

 Shagorika Easwar