Is COVID the New Normal?
Seeing the COVID numbers drop daily is a powerful thing to watch. So is the freedom to be found in traveling, in enjoying the arts, in seeing one’s friends, and going to my local shops. I had a powerful moment this week, when walking home from school with Benjamin, I saw the unmasked, dimpled smile of one of his close friends. A beautiful, joyous face that I had not seen before.
I wanted to share with you how UUCA is approaching the next month as our immediate fear of COVID is superseded by our deep compassion for the world, and particularly in these weeks, for those in Ukraine.
We on the Reopening Team recognize how well we at UUCA have done in balancing the risks of COVID with sensible precautions and with our need for spiritual community. We are continuing to take a balanced approach. Here is what we want to tell you:
- Think of your cloth masks as old t-shirts. They got you through some crazy times. You wore them a lot. You don’t like to toss things that aren’t broken. But they are best left in your closet. They are not really what you should wear in public. Instead, continue to use a high-quality mask (KN95 or equivalent), which can be provided to you or that are available for free at your local pharmacy.
- We also know how it nourishes many of us to come together in body on Sunday mornings. Recognizing that it is better for us to be masked than socially distanced, you will see rows of seats on Sunday morning. When possible, please try to have two seats between you and the next household. The seats in the narthex are close to the deck doors and benefit from increased air circulation.
- Join us for coffee hour. This is the time, in person or virtually, when we can soak in each other’s faces. Help create community by bringing snacks one Sunday.
- We will continue to close our services with one hymn that we are all invited to sing. Joyous voices raised in chorus is a powerful form of spiritual collective action.
We know some would love us to go back to how we were pre-COVID. We aren’t there yet, but we trust that these steps of masking indoors, collective worship, and unmasked community time will nourish us with connection. We will review these protocols again on April 5.
May you (and we) claim the spirit of Spring in the days ahead.
Rev. Anastassia