2021: A Year for Normalcy?
By: Maria Garcia Manzano, AEIC of the Quill
The end of 2020 has come and a new year begins. The beginning of 2021 was lackluster in celebration as due to the Code Red restrictions placed on Manitoba, gatherings outside of one’s household were not allowed. Many welcomed the year alone or through a series of Zoom calls with family and friends. We may ask ourselves, what can we expect with this upcoming year? Is there anything to look forward to? Well, vaccination against COVID-19 has started in Manitoba and Dr. Roussin hopes that by the end of the summer all Manitobans will be immunized. Right now, due to the limited quantity of the vaccine only priority individuals are being given the vaccine. These are individuals who, work in critical care units; work in long-term care facilities (born on or before Dec. 31, 1974); work in acute care facilities (born on or before Dec. 31, 1974) or were assigned to a COVID-19 immunization clinic or testing site. More information regarding the vaccine can be found: https://www.gov.mb.ca/covid19/vaccine/index.html
The vaccine will undoubtedly allow us to participate in activities we have not been able to do so in a while. However, we cannot expect this to happen in a single day. As said by Dr. Roussin, the complete immunization of Manitobans will take time and we must be patient as this process is taking place in order to ensure everything is done correctly. Therefore, while normalcy may be achieved this year it must be done following the correct process. As university students we have now adapted to online learning and this upcoming winter semester will bring back that sense of normalcy we lacked during the holidays. Furthermore, on January 8th, depending on how well Manitobans followed the Red Code restrictions, they may be removed and we may regain some of the privileges we lost such as visiting friends who were part of our bubble, shopping for non-essential items etc. But, in case they are not lifted again, I ask you to be patient. I understand we are bored; I understand we want to see other people, shop, eat out, go to the movies, the list is endless. But we must realize that by acting irresponsibly we are putting the lives of others at risk.
2021 perhaps is not the year where normalcy is retuned but rather the year where a new sense of normal will be achieved.