Do you believe in corona?

Suddenly, the country is divided down the middle: there are those who ‘believe’ in corona and there are those who don’t.

The corona virus has mutated into a religion…

I am a believer. I avoid going out, I wear a mask outside…

As with any other faith, I expect others to respect my beliefs. Even if you think my beliefs are stupid, please respect me and wear a mask and keep your distance when you are near me! Just like you wear a kipa when you go into a synagogue…

When I walk outside, I look for my coreligionists. I’m happy whenever I see someone wearing a mask properly, not on their chin or their elbow. Sometimes I am walking outside and another person is walking towards me. Both of us have our masks on our chins but when we spot each other from far away we do the new ‘corona salute’: we raise our hands, pull the mask over our nose and sometimes even smile and say ‘good morning’. I continue my walk in a better mood. I am not alone. I have allies.

The opposite happens, of course, when the ‘non-believer’ that I run into is the pharmacist, the cashier in the supermarket or my neighbor whom I meet on the staircase… people that I can’t avoid. I feel angry at those people who don’t care about other peoples’ feelings.

And the government? They meet every day to create more rules and regulations that will disrupt everybody’s lives. They don’t seem to realize that there are more than enough rules already, they are just not being followed! And the reason is simple – you can’t legislate faith…

As a citizen, what can I do besides staying home?

Maybe I should create a new home for the believers and call it “The Church of Corona”?

David Wolf

Israel, July 2020