To the editor:

We finally can see the light, however faint, at the end of the tunnel. Make no mistake, we still are in the tunnel and will be for quite some time. The signs in the yards say “We are all in this together” as a reminder that there is support and caring in the midst of despair but that also there is responsibility for each of us to lead our lives in a way that cares for ourselves and others. The admonitions we have heard a thousand times still apply; we must keep up our efforts a while longer.

It is worth noting that the tunnel does not open up back into the world we inhabited a year ago. There have been immense changes both good and bad (and we are not always in a position to know which is which). As we gradually resume a “normal” life we must remember that our actions may determine who has decent health care and who does not; who spends years in prison and who does not; who lives a relatively carefree life and who must be wary of the next insult, the next threat, the next act of violence; who lives and who dies. We must not allow this visitation of plague to be just a terrible memory. We must remember the many ways people have done their best to help, the weaknesses in our society that have been illuminated, the needs that remain for us to resolve. Thank you for caring.

Joe Douglas,

Lawrence