Have you ever had one of those dreams where you’re walking around the grocery store naked? That’s kind of how I felt when I ventured out on the day the Illinois mask mandate was finally lifted.
I began at Jewel. I couldn’t have felt more anxious than if I was preparing to sneak out an apple in my purse without paying. Double checking the door, I saw that the mask mandate sign had indeed vanished. But inside some customers were still covering their faces. What should I do? I fingered the crumpled paper mask in my pocket and decided it was time.
I quickly noticed that the store assistants were not wearing masks so figured it must be OK. Some of them had strange looks on their faces I didn’t immediately recognize. Then I remembered. They were smiling. I’d almost forgotten what that looked like.
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As I walked down the aisles, I remembered those far off days when toilet paper was rationed and tiny bottles of hand sanitizer were worth their weight in Clorox wipes. The days when some people gripped their carts in latex gloves, while others kept their heads down in case you could catch COVID-19 from eye contact.
While ditching my mask felt like a return to normalcy, I could barely remember what that was even like. Did it mean I could actually wear lipstick again?
The idea that I could open a plastic bag by gently huffing into it was amazing. That my glasses wouldn’t fog up as I entered the store, emancipating. That the cashiers would understand what I was saying, extraordinary. (Although sadly still not true in Starbucks where the word “tall” in a British accent apparently sounds exactly the same as “two.”)
Next up, lunch at Jason’s Deli in the suddenly aptly named Freedom Commons. It didn’t seem that long ago that you couldn’t get a salad without having to have someone make it up for you. Now I could enjoy the freedom of picking exactly what I wanted without having to wear the giant plastic gloves they once provided. (By once, I mean the week before.) I wonder how long we’ll all consider these freedoms privileges, and not regress into taking everything for granted again?
I’ll admit my personal stance on mask wearing has changed over time. I’ve never been a rule breaker so I did as I was told in order to make it out of the house. When cinemas and theaters opened up, I would have willingly worn a bucket over my head if it got me into a seat. (With eye holes, obviously, so I could see.)
I’ve endured several flights now while having to mask up and, to be honest, I can see how that might not be a bad idea even after the pandemic. Who hasn’t come down with something after a flight, and I can I honestly say I haven’t had so much as a cold since the pandemic began.
But I do think people should now be able to make up their own minds. We all have different levels of caution, and that’s fine. Just because I’d like to host an unmasked ball, it doesn’t mean my guests don’t have the right to decline. How will we ever know the tornado has passed if we don’t poke our heads out of the basement window? We can’t live in fear forever.
It’s easy to criticize how authorities have handled the pandemic, but short of reliving the whole nightmare again with different rules, we won’t ever really know if we all did the best we could or not. Mr. Biden has just sent me my free pack of COVID tests that might have been even more useful, say, two years ago. On the other hand, back in my homeland, Brits have been stockpiling so many free test kits that they’re making a special series of “Hoarders.” Is it a coincidence that Gov. Pritzker has set us free just as his campaign for reelection ramps up? Let’s hope so.
Despite my delight at being able to mulch my masks, it’s not exactly party time. The pandemic is not over. Even when it is, the fact is that millions of people around the globe have died from COVID-19. Although not everyone has lost a family member, I suspect we all know someone who has.
But what we should be able to celebrate is our new sense of freedom, which hopefully will stick this time round. Because as if we needed a reminder, freedom isn’t free. Just as we should be peeking out into the sunlight, a new darkness is spreading across the other side of the world. Hopefully COVID-19 will become less frightening over the next few months, but for many it may be replaced by something even more terrifying.
Hilary Decent is a freelance journalist who moved to Naperville from England in 2007.