How can you take care of someone else when you haven’t proven you can take care of yourself?
Wearing a mask can’t be politicized. It also cannot be flipped into some bizarre badge of courage to prove how tough we are, or how rebellious we are in the face of danger. No, wearing a mask should be the reflection of one thing and one thing only. Common sense. But if you still need them, here are a few tips to make mask wearing more bearable:
- Buy several in different colors or patterns. Look at your wardrobe and buy masks to match what you wear. In other words, make mask wearing stylish.
- If you know someone who has passed from the disease, write their name(s) on your mask. This is a reminder for you and everyone around you that the virus is real and wearing a mask should be mandatory for everyone.
- Find your mask. I found a mask that allows me to breathe more easily and has a little bit of style. It has velcro wraps so I can take it on and off quickly. I can’t tell you how many times people ask me about it and where I got it from? That social recognition makes it just a bit easier to keep wearing my mask.
I often wonder what Paul Laurence Dunbar would do if he were living in today’s times? Would he marvel more at the technology or the social advances Black Americans have made? I think he would recognize that the more things have changed, many things for Black Americans have stayed the same. The number one thing that hasn’t changed is we have to look out and care for each other to ensure our survival. He would look at his 125 year old lyrics and recognize their importance today.
Why should the world be over-wise, In counting all our tears and sighs?
Nay, let them only see us while, We wear the mask.