I spoke to Adina Bresge of Canadian Press about recently reuniting with my childhood best friends of 44 years. And the relationships lost as a result of COVID related pressures and stressors that just could not be overcome. A bittersweet moment in time, this is.

https://www.thestar.com/life/2021/07/21/a-light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel-canadians-hug-loved-ones-in-post-vaccine-reunions.html

When Anita Szigeti of Toronto reunited with her best friends of 44 years, she said it felt like she held onto them for an hour, even though the hug probably only lasted a minute.

“It really had the effect of changing my whole outlook on life,” said Szigeti. “I was not fully prepared for all of the emotions that I would have — not just when I first saw them, but lingering for so long for the rest of the day and into the weekend.”

But Szigeti said that profound sense of connection also brought home the weight of all that has been lost during the pandemic, including some relationships that didn’t survive the strain of lockdown.

“Many of us have sustained serious losses interpersonally,” she said. “We may have missed our last chance to hug people that we loved…. And even with the people who are returning into our lives now, we’ve lost this year-and-a-half with them.”