Stillness 8-28: When I was young, we’d pile into our car like free-ranging puppies. If we went on a kid-friendly excursion, we’d squeeze as many children as possible into seats and laps. Seatbelts may have dangled somewhere, but we never used them, not once. Ever.
Now it’s so inherently part of our culture to wear a seatbelt we all just do it. We don’t moan and groan that we have to put it on. We don’t mutter, “oh I hate the feeling of this strap against my shoulder” or “how dare anyone make me.” We don’t worry about a tragic ride. We don’t feel afraid or foolish for wearing it. We just automatically wear our seat belt and we’re done with it.
But when seatbelt-wearing first became a mandate, people did feel afraid, foolish, or resentful. It was a difficult habit to get used to. In fact, until there were penalties for not wearing one, there was continued argument, resentment, and politicization.
Isn’t it interesting that until we’re threatened with fines or jail for not doing something smart, we don’t do it. Like littering, for example: until littering was punishable by law, people went on throwing trash out of their car windows. They were free to do so, and they didn’t want that freedom impinged on. And until we were faced with stiff penalties for not wearing a seat belt, we didn’t do it. Just because it was safer wasn’t a good enough reason. Each time we got in a car we had to decide whether we’d wear it this time.
What a waste of time and energy. Just wear your seatbelt. Just stop littering. Do it out of love for the planet, for others, and for yourself. Do it because you care.
I wonder whether if we got in the habit of wearing a mask the same way we put on a seatbelt when we get into a car, we’d remove the constant question of “should I put it on” when we venture forth. This might be especially helpful when we encounter family or friends who aren’t sure what to do. If we set the protocol ourselves and simply wear our mask, not because it’s safer or we’re feeling unsafe, but because it’s a habit, would it lift some of the angst around mask-wearing?
It’s important not to wear a mask—or do anything—because we’re afraid. We can’t live in fear of being punished or getting sick or making someone else sick. But we can wear our mask because we love and care. We love and care for ourselves and we love and care for other people. Let’s make that into a habit.