It wasn’t supposed to be this way. By this point in the pandemic, we expected COVID to be fully in the rearview mirror or far enough behind us that we could look forward to the last of the restrictions falling away.
But Omicron had other plans, and we’re back to making decisions on masks, whether to do activities in-person or virtually and a myriad other decisions that affect our health and the health of those around us.
The Jaffrey-Rindge schools and Town of Peterborough have instituted mask mandates for school and public buildings, respectively. The Jan. 17 celebration of Martin Luther King, Jr. will still be held at The Park Theatre in Jaffrey, but now there will be a livestream option, as well.
Franklin Pierce University in Rindge plans to open on schedule and in-person Jan. 19, as does Keene State College the day before. Jaffrey Public Library, which made its programs virtual or take-home due to staffing issues and the COVID surge, is planning to resume in-person programs Jan. 24.
Of course, for them and everyone else, “plans” is the important word, as COVID has been changing the best-laid plans for nearly two years.
Even school districts that aren’t considering implementing or strengthening mask mandates have to decide on quarantine procedures in light of new guidance from the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services based on guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Whether people agree or disagree with these decisions, the people making them are trying to choose the best of no good options, because COVID does not present “good” options. Even now, with vaccines providing protection from the worst of the virus (if not the virus itself), decision-makers have to weigh everything they do in the context of safety.
While there are no “good” options, the best options individuals can take are to get vaccinated, wear masks and stay home if they aren’t feeling well. If we all do that, eventually we’ll be able to put these decisions behind us once and for all.