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How has the coronavirus pandemic affected how you feel about yourself, others, or the world?
We're about a year and a half into this pandemic, and I'm genuinely surprised about what I've learned about myself in that time: I'm not as compassionate a person as I thought I was. There is a subreddit in which people post articles and photos of folks who were publicly anti-mask or anti-vaccination or both, and who subsequently ended up infected, hospitalized, or dead. I have to say I'm surprised at the internal glee I feel upon reading these posts. I'm not proud of myself about this. Maybe I should try to tamp it down. But reading about people who were virulently wrong about a public health matter, and then suffered as a result of their opinions... The worst one was a fellow who did not get vaccinated, got infected, was hospitalized and died, leaving his widow with seven children. Someone commented, "It looks like he didn't believe in protection for any part of his body". I laughed. I'm a horrible person.
September 1, 2021
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Think about the last time you were in close proximity to any strangers -- maybe at work, at the grocery store, or on public transportation. Did that feel different than it did a year ago?
Big difference! I don't like being too close to anyone, much less strangers. I am very aware of my personal space. The other day at a restaurant, the waitress got pretty close to me (she was wearing a mask, of course), but I felt that she was too close for comfort. I wonder if there will ever be a day when I don't think about people's proximity to me and the possibility of their germs getting into my body. I don't consider myself to be over the top neurotic about this stuff, but it's certainly an awareness I carry around with me like an accessory.
November 12, 2021