Megan Scheffers waited until July to celebrate Christmas with her children after the COVID-19 pandemic kept them apart last winter, but she says decorating candy-tree huts just wasn’t the same in the middle of summer.
She was hoping to make up for the missing traditions this year when two of her three children booked tickets in mid-December to fly to Nova Scotia from the Netherlands, where they live with their father.
But as the Omicron variant of the new coronavirus threatens to boost the holiday season, Scheffers said she’s worried her 12-year-old and nine-year-old might not reach Halifax to open their presents.
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“All the decorations, they’re still packed away because I would pull them out when they arrive so we can do it together,” Scheffers said.
“Last year I did not even put up a tree. Will it be year number two without a tree? and without my children? ”
Scheffers is among many Canadians whose holiday plans hang in the balance, as rising fears of the Omicron variant dampen enthusiasm for a vaccine-protected comeback of Christmas cheer.
Nazeem Muhajarine, professor of public health and epidemiology at the University of Saskatchewan, said winter festivities may need to be turned down as Omicron raises concerns about the safety of holiday travel and gatherings.
But with so much still unknown about the virus mutation, Muhajarine said there is still hope of saving the holiday spirit, encouraging partygoers to see how the situation develops before scrapping their celebrations.
“I think it’s wise to take a more cautious, measured approach,” he said. “But wait and see Christmas Day or New Year’s Day before you complete these plans.”
Some scientists have suggested that Omicron may be more contagious than other virus strains, but Muhajarine said it could take weeks to determine the implications of the new variant, including whether it causes serious illness and whether it can overcome immunity from vaccination or infection.
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He added that although Omicron has been linked to a dramatic increase in COVID-19 cases in South Africa, it is too early to predict how the variant will spread in Canada, which has a much higher vaccination rate.
What is clear is that the uncertainty could create complications for those planning to spend their holidays abroad, now that Canada and a host of other countries have tightened border measures in response to the spread of the variant, Muhajarine said, warning that international travelers risk being entangled in tests. and quarantine requirements to reach their destination.
Visiting family and friends in Canada is a safer effort, he said, but he suggested that visitors take quick antigen tests before arriving and after traveling, as an extra precaution.
Muhajarine said hosts should also be prepared to rearrange their Christmas tables as the provinces roll out their COVID-19 policies for the holiday season.
New Brunswick on Sunday entered the first phase of its so-called winter action plan, which allows for indoor household gatherings of up to 20 people, but the county has advised against inviting people who have chosen not to be vaccinated.
Meanwhile, Ontario officials have indicated they intend to stick to their 25-person limit for indoor gatherings. Quebec is expected to issue its holiday recommendations this week, but Prime Minister Francois Legault has signaled that he hopes to increase the limits for indoor gatherings to 20 or 25 people, up from the current limit of 10.
Muhajarine, for his part, supported even more intimate celebrations with single-digit guest lists, making full vaccination a condition of participation to reduce the risk of making this Christmas the last of a loved one.
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“This is how we can have a safe and smart Christmas this year, and hopefully it will be different next year.”
If that sentiment sounds familiar, it may be because it reproduces a common chorus among public health officials, who for nearly two years have been asking Canadians to provide short-term sacrifices in a brighter future service.
Steve Joordens, a psychology professor at the University of Toronto Scarborough, is concerned that the emergence of the Omicron variant just in time for the holidays could mark a turning point in people’s patience with such promises that harden pandemic fatigue to “depression.”
“We thought we should finally get the chance to celebrate Christmas. If it is taken from us, I think it is a little extra insult to the damage, “said Joordens.
“I think we’re starting to feel a hint of these depressive feelings that nothing we can do really changes anything, and it’s a scary way to start going down.”
Alexandra Martino, a 29-year-old social media manager in London, said she is determined to maintain her Christmas cheer as she prepares to fly across the pond to see her family in Toronto for the first time since last Christmas. This despite the fact that she knew there was a chance that Omicron could initiate a new wave of holiday disruptions in the week leading up to her flight.
“I just have to stay positive and optimistic and just keep thinking, ‘I’m going all the way home. I’m going all the way home,’ ‘until something comes up and says,’ You actually can not. ‘”
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