You better still keep six feet away!
We just passed our one-year pandemic anniversary from when we first closed down in March 2020. This past year was one of a kind. The ordinary, reasonable, and prudent life we once knew feels like ancient history. The new standard of care consists of wearing a mask and maintaining a six-feet distance apart from others. The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically altered our way of life. Coronavirus definitely did not follow our classic rule of give and take, live and let live. It was all taking and no giving. Gee thanks, Coronavirus. You are the worst neighbour.
At least we anticipate it will be over soon. The University of Toronto recently announced plans to hopefully return to in-person learning this fall. I am sure everyone is eager to hear that. But what about summer? As much as I care about my education, my mind can’t help but wonder if we will actually get to enjoy our summer break. Realistically, we know it won’t be a ‘normal’ summer. The question is the degree of departure. As a follow-up to the piece I wrote last year, I am bringing my HH game in fortune-telling.
We look at the past to predict the future. The following chart from Public Health Ontario depicts Ontario and Toronto’s daily record of COVID-19 cases since March 2020.
This is not an optimistic picture. Our number of positive cases are much higher than last March’s, yet Toronto’s outdoor dining has reopened since Saturday, March 20. While we don’t know the full extent of this impact, Toronto saw more than 1,000 daily cases on March 26 for the first time since January. (Apparently there was a “provincial technical issue” that included 260 previous cases. However, Toronto still reported 776 new cases, compared to 484 new cases on March 25.) This suggests we may see a steady increase over the next few weeks. The Ontario government responded by closing outdoor dining in the City of Toronto as of Saturday, April 3.
On the bright side, vaccines are here. Of course, the majority of students may be in one of the last groups to receive them. Nevertheless, as more people are vaccinated over the next few months, Toronto as a whole will become more immune to COVID-19. Maybe by summer the numbers will drop significantly in accordance with the vaccination rate. Who knows. But we already did it once. Albeit with restrictions, I remember I did enjoy the summer even though I knew less about COVID-19 back then. I met with friends (with masks for the most part) and sat at the patios to commemorate how we are living in the weirdest timeline. We learned to adapt and co-exist with COVID-19 in some capacity (because unfortunately this crazy neighbour is likely to stay). We are resilient and will always find ways to make the best out of a bad situation. The same holds true for this summer.
