Toast with Corona beer? With a wedge of lime! It’s Taco Tuesday!
Happen to drive by a very quiet lonely dreary street on the way back from a little trip (I know I am to stay within 10 miles but had to deliver a birthday cake!)
Then this place caught my eyes because of such inviting vibe. No wonder – what a deal? Tacos for just $2 in this North Berkeley neighborhood?
Appears to be open for take outs which makes sense as it’s a Mexican restaurant at a corner spot on Yes ! May 5th is Cinco de Mayo ! Maybe we should be drinking Corona beers to show how fearless we are – to show we can beat this thing !
Under the bright sun, almost forgot about Covid with the festive music provided by these beautiful ladies – sense of normalcy filling the air. A small gathering was forming but all were still nervous about keeping that social distance. An exception? Our canine friends were out about with not a care in this world while their masters were covered in face masks. So courteous and considerate are these lovely people standing politely in line for those tacos.
Well informed – this young lady stood out – she was a picture of flowing vibrant health – she’s tan, young, fit … gorgeous and … had a cute cloth face mask. She’d look like the last person on earth to get infected by this virus, so strong and healthy she looked. And also intelligent as she knows it’s not about being “forced” to wear a mask – she knows it’s not about her own personal freedom and rights; but it’s about doing her best to minimize everyone’s risks from cluster infections; and protecting the community as a whole by exercising respect, compassion, and responsibly – to do no harm. I don’t care much for face coverings myself but just like we don’t care much for wearing a seat belt or not drink and drive, we sometimes have to do what’s not in alignment of your style. Face covering during a worldwide pandemic is about showing respect for lives of others. Asymptomatic people can shed virus unknowingly to many many people. There’s a study of young and healthy asympotomatic individual who infected as many as 100+ people over 5 days in the last SARS epidemic. Here’s an interesting blurb –
We know that this virus is quite sneaky because infected people do not show symptoms for five days. AND apparently, in some cases, it is reported that the incubation period lasted as long as three weeks – unbelievable!
The studies from countries hit hard have found that the number of “silent carriers” (meaning those people who tested positive for the Covid-19 but show no or delayed symptoms) could be as high as 30%. This kind of data was confirmed by a Japanese investigative team led by Dr. Hiroshi Nishiura, an epidemiologist at Hokkaido University.
Giving such findings, perhaps shift the perspective you may have about the face covering is not as an infringement on personal freedom or an instrument to make you feel “dirty” or somehow “infected” or “contagious” but rather, you are showing love for humanity and care for other human beings by minimizing the risks of others getting exposed. Don’t take it so personally – it’s not about you; it’s about protecting everyone – that of course in the scope of this pandemic means – protecting your own self too.
I wish more people could understand that facial covering is not about loss of rights or freedom but a symbol that you care about others as much as your care about yourself. It’s ultimately to give everyone faster recovery from this current strife and ultimately to that freedom we all seek. So come on – just look at it as an opportunity for another vehicle of self expression and find some fashion fun. Match it – find fun and cute material – maybe have a message of gratitude to the essential workers.
Shift your perspective from that of anxieties and panic from seeing face coverings to – THANK YOU for protecting me from the many unknowns about this virus (does it mutate? is there a different strain? )and reducing my risks by you being so considerate to think of what if – what if – you had been exposed.
Tat Tvam Asi – let’s study what that means – Tat Tvam Asi…
And oh, BTW, instead of shaking hands, bow & Namaste:)
