June 19, 2020

Letter 162

Returning to a Sense of Normalcy — or Not?

By Livia Albeck-Ripka

In Melbourne.William West/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

The Australia Letter is a weekly newsletter from our Australia bureau. This week’s issue is written by Livia Albeck-Ripka, a reporter with the Australia bureau.

Earlier this month, I found myself standing among thousands of people at a Black Lives Matter protest in Melbourne where I was reporting, wondering if I was too close to them.

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One person near me was without a face covering, another kept shuffling closer, and a third — her surgical mask pulled down below her chin — was yelling in my direction. That was thirteen days ago, one day short of the standard coronavirus incubation period.

But I’m fine. I think. And maybe that odd and unsettling feeling is just what this phase of the pandemic feels like for all of us — not quite panic-stricken, not quite normal.

Government officials are certainly struggling to give us clear guidance as the crisis evolves.

In recent weeks, authorities around the world warned that the rushed opening of economies, and attendance at mass gatherings in the name of racial injustice — where people would be in close proximity to one another — was a “real” and irresponsible health risk.

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We’ve seen upticks in cases of the virus in some places but others escaped relatively unscathed, and no one seems to be able to tell us exactly why. At the same time, countries where the pandemic’s curve had appeared flattened are now seeing rises in case numbers.

China, which after draconian measures, touted its success over the virus, has seen a flare up in Beijing. New Zealand, which declared the virus eliminated has now recorded three new cases. And Victoria, where three protesters have become ill, on Wednesday recorded its largest single-day increase in infections in over a month.

While there is a lot we do not know about the coronavirus, what recent weeks have made clear is that there is a cost in returning to normal, and that in some cases, we might only be a misstep or two away from the virus beginning to take hold again.

So as we tiptoe out into the world — how much risk should we take?

Each of us are making personal and often unconscious calculations: Some people are operating on the assumption that if they follow regulations, they will be fine. Others feel frustrated by the inconsistencies in authorities’ advice. And some say that rushing back to normal life, with no vaccine at the ready, is dangerous.

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“Everything we’re doing is unknown territory,” said Hassan Vally, an epidemiologist and senior lecturer in public health at La Trobe University in Melbourne.

“What we do know,” he added, “is that as a society we can’t survive in complete lockdown until we get a vaccine: We have to get back to normal.”

Health authorities are trying to manage the new normal by treating new cases like embers, Professor Vally added. The idea is that as long as you snuff them out quickly enough, there is no major fire, and everyone who is not infected can go with their lives.

But what does that mean for each of us as individuals? If the markers of the pandemic are plastic shields between tables, using hand sanitizer as you enter and exit a store, or providing your number at the pub, is that enough, or will be lulled into a sense of complacency that could contribute to the spread of the virus?

When I got home after the protest, I removed my mask carefully. I scrubbed my hands for 20 seconds. I changed my sweater. I washed my face. That night, I went out to eat with friends for the first time in weeks. There were no masks to remind me of the pandemic.

After a beer, and laughing face-to-face with a group for the first time in weeks, it was even easier to forget. Since then, I’ve begun to feel my hypervigilance fade even further. I don’t wipe down my door handles as often, or my phone, and I’m still fine. For now.

We want to know: How are you managing the easing of restrictions? What personal calculations are you making when you decide to step out into the world?

Let us know at nytaustralia@nytimes.com.

Here are the stories for the week.

Australia and New Zealand

A sedated male platypus receiving a physical.David Maurice Smith for The New York Times

The Return of the Platypuses Rescued from Australia’s fires, a small fleet of wild platypuses is launched back into their wetland home and into an uncertain future.

Break the China Habit? Lobsters, Lights and Toilets Show How Hard It Is The risks of relying economically on the Asian superpower have never seemed clearer. But as the world tries to get moving again, it needs China more than ever.

A Stimulus Backlash Delivers a Global Warning: Value Female Workers Australia is pouring millions into the male-dominated construction industry while ending free child care. Critics say that is illogical and reflects sexist biases.
What Have We Learned About Reopening? Some countries have handled it better than others. Which path will the United States take?

Around the Times

Hilary Swift for The New York Times

Dreamers’ Are Elated After Getting a Reprieve on DACA. Thousands of young people who were in the country illegally as children have been caught in legal limbo. A new Supreme Court ruling gave them a temporary win.
Mourning the Letters That Will No Longer Be Written, and Remembering the Great Ones That Were. Before the telephone wounded them and email administered the death blow, handwritten letters were useful: They let you know who the crazies were.
So You’re Thinking About Riding a Bike. These days, with limits on public transportation and daily protests, cyclists dominate cities around the country. Here’s how to become one.
Amid Upheaval, Juneteenth Takes the Cultural Spotlight. The holiday, commemorating its 155th anniversary this year, is slowly being recognized across the country, but it is still marked by contradictions.