https://community.aarp.org/t5/Leisure-Lifestyle/A-TEACHABLE-MOMENT/m-p/2547863#M14446 <P><STRONG>A Teachable Moment</STRONG></P><P>Today, the Hawaii Symphony Associates, a quasi-PR organization that my wife and I joined a few years ago, conducted its monthly Q and A.</P><P>Mid-way in the meeting, I noticed a very large unfamiliar woman who was seated opposite me at a good distance.</P><P>Suddenly, the big lady blasted out a decibel-bending cough that reverberated in my ears for a few moments. The noise was appalling, but what disturbed me the most was the possibility that my fellow volunteer might have been a spreader of the newest Covid-19 variant.</P><P>The middle-aged lady soon put on her mask, perhaps intending to make amends for her unhealthy outburst.</P><P>At the same time, I noticed that an elderly woman who sat to the left of the cougher was frantically trying to pry something out of her uncooperative purse. I was convinced that she was looking for her mask because while sitting next to me last week at a chamber concert, she had worn her mask throughout the performance.</P><P>Whether I was right or wrong about her motive, after the flustered woman scurried though her purse, she couldn’t find what she was searching for; so she stuffed the remains back into her bag, stoically enduring the rest of the meeting.</P><P>I made a vow after this incident. I need to carry a readily accessible mask with me at all times. In case someone near me burps, belches, wheezes, sneezes, or coughs, I will be prepared to protect myself from any respiratory virus that might aggravate my already immunologically compromised body. &nbsp;</P> Thu, 04 Apr 2024 04:21:31 GMT schlomo 2024-04-04T04:21:31Z https://community.aarp.org/t5/Leisure-Lifestyle/A-TEACHABLE-MOMENT/m-p/2547863#M14446 <P><STRONG>A Teachable Moment</STRONG></P><P>Today, the Hawaii Symphony Associates, a quasi-PR organization that my wife and I joined a few years ago, conducted its monthly Q and A.</P><P>Mid-way in the meeting, I noticed a very large unfamiliar woman who was seated opposite me at a good distance.</P><P>Suddenly, the big lady blasted out a decibel-bending cough that reverberated in my ears for a few moments. The noise was appalling, but what disturbed me the most was the possibility that my fellow volunteer might have been a spreader of the newest Covid-19 variant.</P><P>The middle-aged lady soon put on her mask, perhaps intending to make amends for her unhealthy outburst.</P><P>At the same time, I noticed that an elderly woman who sat to the left of the cougher was frantically trying to pry something out of her uncooperative purse. I was convinced that she was looking for her mask because while sitting next to me last week at a chamber concert, she had worn her mask throughout the performance.</P><P>Whether I was right or wrong about her motive, after the flustered woman scurried though her purse, she couldn’t find what she was searching for; so she stuffed the remains back into her bag, stoically enduring the rest of the meeting.</P><P>I made a vow after this incident. I need to carry a readily accessible mask with me at all times. In case someone near me burps, belches, wheezes, sneezes, or coughs, I will be prepared to protect myself from any respiratory virus that might aggravate my already immunologically compromised body. &nbsp;</P> Thu, 04 Apr 2024 04:21:31 GMT https://community.aarp.org/t5/Leisure-Lifestyle/A-TEACHABLE-MOMENT/m-p/2547863#M14446 schlomo 2024-04-04T04:21:31Z