Page 69 - ActsCOVID-19_and_Me

Face Masks
We used masks to help prevent spreading the virus and then added a face shield. The face shield was much more comfortable and certainly adequate when we were outside. When we were inside
in close quarters (other than in our cottage), we used a mask as well. One thing we learned very quickly was that there was far less danger of spread if you were outside.
Seeing someone with a face mask before COVID would have been very strange, but masks became routine, and those who refused to wear them were putting others in danger.
Before leaving the house, I had always checked my hair and put on a little makeup, sometimes earrings. Now that we were wearing masks, there was no need for makeup and earrings. In some ways, it was nice not to have to bother with makeup, but in our masks, we lost some of our identity.
My husband Jim and I moved to Manor House on December 27, 2019. We were here only a short time before heading to Texas for our annual visit to our children and grands, leaving Seaford on January 11and returning on February 23.
We met a few people before leaving for Texas and a few more between our return and the onset of isolation and masks. We
were really just starting to know people when masks and social distancing took over. Now when we met someone new, much of their face was covered so the only way to recognize them again was if they had a distinctive mask.
Most activities had been canceled to avoid close contact, so the only time we met people was when we walked around the campus. Conversations were usually fairly brief in passing. I felt it was hard to get to know those I was meeting for the first time.
One morning as I was leaving tai chi class, a lady I didn’t know said, “You’re Bear’s mom, aren’t you?”
When my children were young, I was often identified as a child’s mother. Now I am identified as the mother of a fluffy white American Eskimo dog. Works for me!
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