The more things change, the more they stay the same. 

It’s been this way now for over two years. One step forward and a multitude of steps in reverse. Sure, I could throw out one tired adage after another as one day continues to roll over into the next one, but I’ll stop here. 

The numbness of this ongoing pandemic has altered my personality, in many ways. So much so that each time I embark on a specific bit of writing, it keeps navigating to how challenging life has been for so many since the beginning of 2020. 

I’ve come to realize that a great deal of complacency has set in, both in my life, and elsewhere. We’ve learned to live with a constant threat looking over our shoulders in the form of this ever-mutating virus. We have acquiesced to mandates, safe social behaviors, travel restrictions, empty store shelves, both a struggling economy and the sad, fragmented, individual who currently resides in the White House, tripping and falling through his presidential tenure. 

In my own circle of friends, we often look at each other and say, “when will this end?” Each of us longs for that evasive glimmer of hope, for the right answers and solutions that might help life return to some element of normalcy. In some ways, it’s almost humorous when we look back on our previous COVID fears, hysteria almost, that drove us into near hibernation. Now, we share how thankful we are because being vaccinated made getting one or more of the virus mutations…”so much easier!”.  

Will this be life going forward? Dutifully lining-up to get more and more boosters and our government will continue to orchestrate our survival; are we good with this?  Will we continue to remain nothing more than “test cases” in an ongoing quest to bring an end to COVID?

If I’ve learned anything, anything at all, at this point, it’s to question, to challenge, every damn element of authority with whatever time I have left in my life.

 

From Mama Kat’s Writer’s Workshop...Tell us about something you learned this month.