It is January 6th and my son Rowan, just like every other healthy young person in British Columbia, is not allowed to attend school. Yet, yesterday I received a phone call from his “interim” Educational Assistant to inquire if there is anything they can do to support us. What am I to say to that, except, open the school, and allow my son back into the classroom where he belongs and where he can learn and interact with others, that would be the best way to support us. And yet, as much as his mother and I try to keep him productive; we also have to work so we can pay our mortgages, keep our households afloat and pay back into the provincial tax base, which then funds the schools which, at this time, our children are not allowed to attend.

So I examine the reasons: Because, the media and Public Health Officers say, there is a surge in Covid-19 cases, which, in itself is confusing, considering 80% of the province is double vaccinated and poised to receive their booster. So if the Vaccination is effective then why now this latest surge of cases and hospitalizations? Because, they say, this NEW strain is highly contagious and the current vaccination program does not prevent it, it only lessens it’s impact. And then I ask, if thousands of people are contracting a milder version of SARS Covid 2 and the vaccination program is lessening the symptoms and 80% of the population are double vaccinated, why the sudden campaign of strict health measures when last year, nobody was vaccinated against a more severe illness, schools were still open and all we were doing was wearing masks and staying 6 feet apart? It’s a circus of questions that appear never to get answered, only diverted. Which then leads me to ask: How many more variants, how many more vaccines and how many more boosters before we can put all of this behind us and move on with our lives?

Rowan is completing what should be considered an enormous milestone year; his graduating year and an exit from a phase in his life which should be looked back on with pleasant nostalgia in years to come. But, so far, this year, it feels like he has been dragged by his mask through the stifling hallways of his high school, as if he is a disease to be avoided. He has been tossed around from one EA to another; each one of them masked, so, he can’t even read the expressions on their faces, which, to him, would be his primary form of communication. Rowan is non verbal and relies heavily on body language and facial expressions, in order to communicate.

I am not blaming the faculty, or staff; I am sure each one of them might be as frustrated as we, the parents are, but I do take direct aim at our provincial leadership and the questionable Public Health Orders they spew from their heavily guarded pedestals. If they would take a moment and step down from them and actually interact with the children who seem to be the target of their confusing rhetoric, perhaps they would then realize they are causing more harm then good.

This generation of children will be permanently scarred by the way our leadership has handled this outbreak and the alleged variants that have followed; forever their mistrust in authorities will now cause them to question the institutions which have been designed to keep them safe. I have never, in my life, experienced such heavy handed oppression and it causes me, the parent, to counter balance the mandates with more leniency in the home. Home, being the institution in place to provide the guardrails in their lives, is now a cushion to soften the blows of a world gone mad.

I’m not sure if I look forward to Rowan’s graduation ceremony; and how will that look I wonder? Will he be escorted on and off the stage in his gown and “mask”, as quickly as possible so that he doesn’t breach proximity rules, or will it take place on a video platform, so nobody can interact with each other and pat each other on the back and embrace each other in a warm and healthy, life giving hug, like the old days?

The old days: how I long for you! I want you to come back and fast; but, I’m afraid that might take a “push back” too overwhelming to counter influence the mandates we have all become so accustomed too. Are we, as a society, ready for that? Are we ready to fight for our liberties, or will we sit back and take every counter productive measure that filters down from the powers and consider it just one more stepping stone on the pathway back to normal? At this point in time; I don’t think we would recognize normal again if it ran us down.

My body is designed to weather unbelievable storms, and it has, trust me, because I was allowed to play in the dirt when I was kid, and, I take care of myself by breathing fresh unfiltered air, I take my vitamins, eat real food and I exercise. I am afraid the daily routines that dominate school life these days, those which are supposed to keep our kids “safe” are, in fact, dismantling our children’s ability to fight disease. The masks, the sanitizers and the constant push to keep kids away from each other. What are they really doing? Are they effectively keeping our kids from getting sick, or are they effectively turning their robust little bodies into compromised immune deficient sick magnets? Time will tell, I suppose.

My young boy is graduating this year, and I am proud of him. It is a milestone for anyone, especially a special needs child, to cross the stage and accept his or her diploma of completion. I always visualized the bright wide contagious smile on his face as he is escorted by his EA up onto the stage, then the big hug I’d receive afterwards and the look of complete satisfaction, in knowing this would be a truly memorable day for him. But, I am afraid these might be pipe dreams as, once again, the provincial government considers extended “functional” school closures and possible online learning. Why? I ask… why is that?

I am not convinced these are altruistic mandates put in place by the government, or, as pushed by a slanted mainstream media, bent on scaring the shit out of everybody, so, here’s my solution in a nutshell, and most of you won’t like this: Open EVERYTHING back up again, the bars, the restaurants, the Gyms, the theatres and the schools. Scrap the Vaccination passports, burn the masks and anyone who feels they are vulnerable to whatever variant is spreading through our communities, I will collectively look after you by advising you to stay home. I will do your groceries and run for your prescriptions and keep my distance from you as I walk by you in the shops, because that is the respectful and sane thing to do.

This life is short! And we have already thrown two years of it away and who knows what forces might cause us to become critically injured. maimed or even killed tomorrow. I don’t want to waste one more second worrying about an invisible enemy that only becomes a giant when the Media decides to blow it beyond it’s deserving proportion. I choose life and to live it to the best of my ability. I choose my children and I will celebrate every milestone they experience and I will hug them and smile at them and never stop talking about how amazing they are, and, so long as they believe, even in a world that pushes back at us relentlessly, they can go on to achieve great and wonderful things, despite the oppressive culture of fear that so dominates society today.

The featured image on this post is a picture taken last summer. It was a special day for Rowan and I, because it was just us, out for a day down at Skaha Beach Park. I made Rowan his favorite lunch: two burgers, no patty, just bacon and cheese and ketchup, and we sat in the sunshine, making stupid faces at each other. The smile on his face was not just a passing expression, it sat on his face for the entire duration of lunch, in fact, it was difficult to eat with out laughing and perhaps that is how the world should be. They say Omicron is a mild variant, (which begs the question: why are people going to the hospital?) but, that it is also very contagious and spreads quickly, will generally not kill it’s host, because it wants to survive just like any virus, and, if treated properly, produces symptoms similar to the common flu. I am reading this on the CDC website, by the way.

Something else just as virulent is the smile on my son’s face, or any child’s face for that matter, and if you were to stare at it long enough, anyone with a third of a heart, would begin smiling too. And then, you would look over at the next person behind you, still smiling, and chances are, that person would begin smiling as well and so on and so forth until, suddenly, the whole room is smiling. And here’s something I know about smiling: they say, your brain releases stress fighting molecules, triggering a domino effect of chemicals: endorphins, serotonin and dopamine, which fortifies your immune system and, in turn, helps keep the bugs at bay.

Authoritative power is a crazy concept. On one hand, our governing institutions avoid even the mention of if, especially during election campaigns, because they don’t want to scare people off, and then, when they take power, it is their mission to win control over the hearts and minds of their citizens and then justify, through collective propaganda, the development of policies and mandates which garner more control. Let’s face it, a controlled populous is easier to manage then a free society, so, I suppose, it is always the default of Government to move in the direction of more authoritative control. I can see why they don’t want this “pandemic” to end.

In contrast, in my household, it is my mission to relinquish control and allow my children to deal with the consequences of their own actions. That’s how they learn, not by coercion, which causes push back, but, by allowing them the freedom to learn and grow themselves. My only job as a parent, is to provide a safe and comfortable environment for them to live in and a few guardrails like: If they don’t do chores, they don’t receive rewards.

The family model, I believe, is the absolute best representation of how to create a functional society, and, it is in my opinion that, if Governments would stop trying to wing it and claim control through consequential coercive tactics then, perhaps they wouldn’t be hated so much. It is my hope that the Governors of the future will inherit this model and allow us, the people of the Nation, to learn the rules of life by trial and error. That is what freedom means to me; the ability to freely make mistakes and to choose our own paths, to choose our own medicine and to choose whatever direction it is that we will we walk down the streets, or move down the grocery store isle.

Five months to graduation. What will it look like I wonder? If it requires masks and proximity mandates, then Rowan and I might have our own little celebration at home, or perhaps, a couple of burgers down at the beach and a few laughs.