Cold Masks

It’s been a rough few weeks at our house. Hosting a sick house guest, then playing nursemaid to a sick husband and now our youngest daughter stayed home from school. With a runny nose, sore throat, cough and mild aches and pains she came down stairs this morning and said, “I think I have what dad had.” I told her to go back to bed and I called the school to have her excused. Around 10 AM she got up to take some cold medicine and asked me, “Why don’t people in the United States use cold masks when they are sick to help keep from spreading germs?” Good question, I had always figured it was for vanity reasons. Then she shared with me that in other countries it is considered to be polite to wear a mask to keep from spreading germs and that if she had a mask she could have roughed it out and attended school today. Am I a bad parent for not thinking of stocking the house with cold masks? I honestly can’t imagine being in high school and wearing a cold mask to classes it seems so uncool. I am obviously more shallow than my 16 year old! It’s nice to know she stayed home to keep from spreading germs but now I am wondering why cold masks are not catching on in the US? To avoid the risk of losing class credits many students go to school sick. To avoid the loss of income many responsible adults go to work sick. Do we need designer masks or just reminders that the masks are to keep from spreading germs not to protect us from catching them? Is it selfishness or is it vanity that keeps us from protecting others or is it something completely different?

Cynthia Freese
Issaquah