Christmas changes after parents are gone

When our parents were still alive and living independently, my sisters Patty and Nancy spent the day after Thanksgiving doing Mom and Dad’s Christmas shopping for 13 kids, spouses, and grandkids. In the meantime, at Mom and Dad’s condo my brother-in-law Bob and I put up two tall Christmas trees, a nativity scene, outdoor lights, and other decorations. When my sisters returned with dozens of gifts, the wrapping began. By the time we went to bed the Friday after Thanksgiving, gifts were stacked up to a half-dozen deep under the tree in the living room. They were opened on Christmas Eve after we ate a traditional Slovak meal made from my grandmother’s recipes.

The last such Christmas was in 2018. Dad and Mom died within the past four years. This is the second year I’ve done no Christmas shopping. Family members in my generation once bought for everyone, and then we cut back by drawing one name each, but now we don’t even discuss whether we’ll exchange presents. 

Reconsidering masks

Here and there I see someone wearing a mask, but for the most part, it seems that the end of the pandemic and the end of mask wearing coincided. An Axios/Ipsos American Health Index in August found that only 15 percent of Americans wear a mask at least sometimes, a decline from 23 percent in May and 30 percent in February.

I was glad to give up masks. They’re uncomfortable and make it harder to hear and to breathe. The loops occasionally knocked off my hearing aids. Masks block my vision when I’m looking down, which is scary on uneven sidewalks and steps. 

Since my recent bout of COVID, however, I’ve been thinking about whether to mask in some situations. Here’s a sampling of medical advice.

For my birthday, I got COVID

“During COVID,” people say, relegating to the past the period of lockdowns, masking, and horrific death statistics. Indeed, the US government declared the COVID-19 public health emergency over in May.

We think we’re past COVID until we get it.