Unmasking (5/16/21)

To mask or not to mask is the question on many minds this weekend. The CDC released new guidelines for fully vaccinated people on where and when people can remove their masks. Covid-19 cases are dropping and the number of vaccinated is increasing. Children aged 12 to 16 are now eligible to receive the Pfizer vaccine. This news points to the beginning of our emergence from the pandemic.

The air is warm, flowers are blooming, and the CDC news that “[I]f you are fully vaccinated, you can resume activities that you did prior to the pandemic” is emphasizing the renewal of spring. At this time last year, instead of springing anew, we were forced underground into Covid-19 lockdowns and hibernation. For so many reasons, this week's news is good -- it is great in fact, yet for many of us, it feels scary and confusing. Some are chronicling on social media "first hugs” with loved ones after a year of separation. Others are dipping their toes into meeting friends in outdoor restaurants or other activities. New haircuts appear in Zoom windows. Yet, we are now faced with the question “Do we take them off?”. We have been thrust into the great mask debate and the rules are not so clear. There are the CDC guidelines, state and city rules, individual business requirements and they are not all in sync. Putting all that aside, however, there is the question of what each of us personally is comfortable doing and how do we stick to our own comfort zones in the face of peer and social media pressure. For some of us that will mean taking our masks off outside but leaving them on inside. For some, it will mean keeping our masks on outside, particularly in crowded city streets.

It has been a year of uncertainty and we hunger for definitive answers. We have clung to mask wearing for the obvious beneficial scientific reasons to protect ourselves and others and it is hard to shed the shield. Your answer to mask or unmask could be guided by science, but in the end, science does not always fully inform our behaviors. It is a personal decision when each of us will feel comfortable to reveal our smile and remove the face covering that has given us comfort and some security over the last tumultuous year. It is okay that we are not all going to get there at the same time. The beauty of our community is that we support each other's journey as we emerge. Spring is in the air, and “maybe the yes comes before the readiness. Maybe you say yes and then you become equipped to handle whatever is about to happen.” —Glennon Doyle