The Eyes have it

Fashion Trend... if there is ever a phrase that is the polar opposite of me, it would be 'Fashion Trend'. Sweat pants, stained T shirts, jeans, yoga pants with cowboy or rubber boots, zero makeup..that's the face I present to the world when not at work. Fashion implies style, popularity, and glamour.. things I with which I have nothing in common. Some fashion trends such as 80s big hair with the accompanying gallons of lacquer required to keep it in place have mercifully gone away. Other trends, such as wasp waisted corset wearing, we look back on with shock and a sense of distaste. A so called fashion trend that no one saw coming in 2020 was.... masks. Fashion trend? or necessity? Why not both, some would say.

At my employer, it's business casual for nonclinical staff. Khakis, tunic shirt, sweater, name badge, hair pulled back in a band or twisted into a knot. And, a mask.

Masks, an added element which has rendered any kind of makeup except mascara and eyeshadow moot. The eyes definitely have it. Eyes, brows, and hair when not covered.

In less than a year's time, it's almost odd to see someone without a mask. The naked face stands out. Fleshy, bare, a pariah; a outcast in some places of business. "Your kind is not welcome here." The offender either reacts with truculence or shrinks away in shame, marked as surely as a leper.

Working in a hospital masks are the order of the day; sometimes doubled up, along with a face shield. A disposable bulky gown goes with that as bedside staff enter patient rooms. Barrier against droplets is a matter of course.

Talking on the phone with patients often presents a challenge. Along with the sensation of talking through a towel, there is the added element of a muffled voice going through a phone receiver, and the loudly blowing negative pressure fans in the rooms by their beds.

Making Masks fun/fashionable is perhaps one way to cope. Cartoon characters, logos, bright colors and patterns are a break to monotony. A staff member and I joked about starting a line of Designer Masks for the Fashionably Safe consumer. Perhaps masks in white satin for brides and black silk for grooms. Party masks for celebrations festooned with streamers, sequins, or beads. Masks now come in bright, startling color combinations as well as politically charged phrases or positive affirmations. Sports teams have their logos. If we have to wear them, let's make them fun!

My masks will continue to be the lowest cost disposable variety. The blocking of expression, however, continues the same. Difficult to show smiling good will with a mask on.

Maybe a hand held emoji, one side smiling and one side frowning? Or a sign that says "hello, have a nice day". At some point, verbal communication may end altogether in public. Or we'll evolve into being more sensitive to gaze and muffled tones saying "hello".

I imagine a startling future as mask wearing decreases. Seeing full faces; jaws, cheeks, chins... will seem strange at first. Almost intrusive and too much to take in. Soon, however, the pleasure of seeing a glowing smile, a flawlessly made up face, eye popping lipstick, or even sexy razor stubble will become commonplace again and masks will once more be relegated to being medical and not couture.

Will masks as a fashion trend end anytime soon? We don't know but can only hope. I envision future generations looking at pictures and reading about the pandemic as a strange time that's hard to imagine.

" Who are all these people?"

" We don't know. They're all wearing masks."