Member-only story
People Are Taking off Their Masks, but I’m Not Sure I’ll Ever Be the Same Again
Reentry after a pandemic is not as simple as I first thought
I got the second dose of my COVID-19 vaccination last month; as the lovely nurse injected me with the precious liquid, I beamed ear-to-ear. I realised my huge grin might have seemed quite strange to someone stabbing me in the arm, but luckily, she seemed to understand my reaction and didn’t call security.
But then again, I was wearing a mask, so perhaps she didn’t see my insanely wide grin anyway.
‘Isn’t science amazing’, I gushed. Hesitating to wipe my glasses as they steam up, for the millionth time that hour.
The nurse looked me straight in the eye at this point, the edges of her own surgical mask slightly twitched and the corners of her eyes creased.
‘It really is, love’.
I’m sure she was smiling.
When I think back to last month, I remember that nurse’s smile, I see it: wide, unarmed, warm. But that memory isn’t real, because that nurse was wearing a mask, and so was I. During this pandemic, I’ve found myself mentally ‘filling in’ people’s expressions. It’s almost like my brain can’t cope with that strip of material instead of a mouth, so it makes it up…
