It’s a fashion, fad. Some love it, some hate it. What is it about this flimsy contraption, that has made it so popular…and unpopular? I only used to see it with any regularity when I visited hospitals or medical centres, for myself or to see others. I didn’t like it, it reminded me of sterile environments and surgical scents. But I’ve always considered those wonderful men and women who served within those walls as heroes and heroines. They truly are. Will always be. I will always admire them and envy them.

Oh! And I used to laugh out loud, silently, at those who wore masks long before Covid gate crashed the party. They were a rare handful. I sometimes used to see them on trams and trains, in parks. An odd bunch, who wore masks in normal times. They weren’t elderly or didn’t look sickly. Perhaps ‘Germaphobics’ I thought, what a way to live, scared of the very air they breathed. Forever fighting, fighting an invisible enemy. I judged relentlessly and freely.

A few years later, I’m eating my own words…or…or…thoughts. The mask is now part of my ‘stepping out of the home’ ritual. I pat my pockets to check for my purse, my car keys, house keys, mobile phone, and now, I pat my face to feel for that damn mask. I even frown at those who don’t wear one. I still find it slightly uncomfortable to breathe in it. But that’s not a problem. Falling in love is a gradual and evolving journey; a love, hate business.

I step out in to a bizarre world, there are ninjas, super heroes, super villains, sneering skulls, even pirates. They come in all styles and shapes. Some, obviously are homemade, handmade. In somewhat deserted shopping malls and streets, this provides a welcome relief. I meet a new public. Man can adapt. I have. The worst part is when you wave at people who you never knew or frown at people you knew. Hard to recognise anybody.

I don’t understand the enemies of the mask, I like it, if a little bit of discomfort when breathing helps me to breathe a little while longer, how dare I complain. How dare I judge.

Yesterday as I went to do my groceries, under lockdown, I saw several faces; bare. What an odd bunch. I think I might miss the mask, when this is finally over. Keeping all things crossed.