David Shapiro: Coronavirus leaves community with emotional whiplash

There’s a restlessness in our state as we start to come out of the COVID-19 pandemic — or not.

Some are eager to put the coronavirus behind us and burst out charging. These tend to be younger people who figure their worst risk is something akin to a bad cold.

Others are not so convinced COVID-19 is finished with us and wish leaders would be more cautious in easing back to whatever “normal” is going to be. These tend to be older people and those with underlying health conditions whose risk is more existential.

I’m in the latter group, older and with disabilities and medical conditions that wouldn’t mix well with COVID-19.

But despite continuing anxiety about the virus, I don’t see how we can lock down indefinitely when the great majority don’t face deadly risk. I can’t in good conscience ask young and healthy people to keep their lives on hold forever because of whatever greater risk I may be at.

I hope others will be considerate and not act recklessly in spreading the virus, but we can’t count on everybody to exercise personal responsibility in these “me-first” times; in the end, I can only be vigilant in protecting myself.

For two years most people here stayed home, wore masks, got vaccinated, submitted to testing for travel and did just about everything authorities asked of them.

But they rightfully won’t put up with it endlessly as infection numbers go sharply down and other states loosen the reins.

Local officials said they were following the science when they ordered restrictions, and now that the science — in the name of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — says it’s OK to loosen up, authorities have to follow that science, too, or lose all credibility with the public.

Gov. David Ige and the county mayors are doing this with varying degrees of enthusiasm, but they’re all headed in generally the right direction as long as there’s flexibility to tighten up again if omicron makes a big comeback here as it has elsewhere.

I seldom have reason to go out anymore, but when I do it’s good to see most people — excluding tourists — still wearing masks; it’s a minor inconvenience that makes sense for protecting ourselves and others.

It’s a historical shame that we let masks and vaccines become political and cultural dividers instead of coming together as in past public health crises.

The refusal of large swaths of the public to cooperate in battling COVID-19 is high among the reasons there’s little hope of eradicating this virus and why we have no choice but to learn to live with it.

My comfort level has increased enough that I was looking forward last week to venturing out for lunch with an out-of-town friend.

Unfortunately, I woke up with one of my ailments flaring that day and was disappointed to have to beg off, but it felt good to at least be able to think about sticking my head out again.

Reach David Shapiro at volcanicash@gmail.com.