Dear Barb:
I hosted Easter dinner this year and what a fiasco! The COVID divisiveness is still with us. Some of my family members are vaccinated and some are not. No one came in with a mask or did any social distancing. I personally didn’t social distance or wear a mask either.
Everything seemed to be fine at first, everyone was just glad to be together, but after a few drinks the conversation began to focus on COVID. The people who were not vaccinated were commenting that they did not get vaccinated, and they are fine, whereas the vaccinated said they were just lucky they didn’t end up in the hospital. The voices began to escalate, and each side was attempting to point out that they did the right thing. I tried to calm things down and change the subject, but no luck. They continued until most of the unvaccinated got up and left. Needless to say, our Easter was spoiled. I wonder how long this is going to go on, are we ever going to be a united family, who just enjoys being together or has COVID changed our lives forever? – Pat
Hey Pat:
I believe COVID has changed our lives and will be with us for a long time to come. There is no cut and dry answer to the vaccine question since people who are vaccinated still get COVID and can still spread it. Many individuals gather their information from news media, therefore depending on which side you listen to, you will tend to gravitate to that side of the equation. People who have chosen to be vaccinated have been called “sheep who are just following the herd.” The unvaccinated have held protests and blocked hospitals and business, and we all remember the infamous “truck convoy.” As a society we are extremely polarized and the reasons why this issue exploded to this extent are unclear.
Some family members have chosen to cut off loved ones because they don’t share their view. Perhaps some understanding and compassionate will help to resolve some of the tensions with friends and family members. People hold different views on many issues, such as religion, homelessness, or whether there should be a supervised drug injection centers in their neighborhood. Your belief system will depend on many variables, your background, your place in society, what you choose to put in your body, and simply your faith in the health care system. Although COVID will be with us for a long time, I believe we must learn to live with it before we can completely resolve these issues. My advice is to as the song says, “try a little tenderness.” Thanks for writing and best of luck Pat.