It’s so wonderful to see Singapore lift its outdoor mask mandate. However, since last month where the mandate is removed, we still see most people on the streets don their mask. It is perhaps a strange sight where people are not enjoying the new found freedom they have.

In fact, during the first few months of the pandemic, many in fact have longed for the liberty of removing their face covers which restrict breathing and cause perspiration in humid Singapore. Yet why are people not doing so now when restriction has been removed?

It might be easy to assume that people are still wary about the spread of the virus, but I suspect the reason could be a psychological one. My assumption is we’ve gotten too comfortable hiding ourselves behind a mask and it feels uneasy and naked to be showing our face.

Now, we must know that every world event shape human being. With the emergence of internet and social media, people gradually got used to hiding behind the screen. We’ve bred netizens, keyboard warriors, people who feel comfortable behind the screen.

Now, with two and a half years into the pandemic, what have we bred? We’ve bred people who only feel comfortable behind a mask. And we felt insecure letting people read us through our facial expressions. It is the case for adults, it is more so for young people. Some sort of an “instinctive expressiveness” has been taken away from us through prolonged mask wearing. And I saw it really affects the way we communicate as normal human beings now.

In fact, there was an article that speaks about how masks impair the way we read emotions. It limits the ability of people of all ages to infer emotions expressed by facial expression, so much so that it restricts us from feeling and learning from each other. We don’t really learn what is the right way to express our emotions anymore, whether it is happiness, or excitement, or anger, or frustration. So eventually it cripples our ability to express.

I mean can a frown bring out enough of our frustration? Can rolling our eyes mean anything? Does it mean we are belittling someone, or we are just angry with someone? Or can squinting our eyes express enough of our joy? Or are we just expressing gratitude instead? You see, it restricts the full expressiveness of a human being. And when we’re restricted that way, our hearts will get accustomed to it. We no longer see the value of expressing ourselves clearly and naturally anymore. We take short cuts in expressing ourselves. And we got used to hiding more of ourselves which inevitably make us more self-absorbed.

Now, my brethren, having more tendency to self-absorb is definitely not good for our mental health. No one hides themselves and become healthier emotionally and mentally. We are created to express ourselves freely and entirely with facial image that God has given us.

Why?

Because that is how we are created, my brethren. We are never created to hide our face behind a facial covering. We could do so if we’re working in an operating theatre, we could do so if we’re in a diseases-stricken region, but we are not to do so for prolonged period. It affects our self-esteem; it affects our communication with people.

And it is more so for young people nowadays whose social life is already taking a hit due to too much social media involvement. By wearing a mask wherever they are and whatever they go, they are only creating more social hurdles for themselves. And it is definitely not healthy for young minds and hearts.

There is an article in New York Times that talks about how for some teens, as masks come off, anxiety sets in. And it could be for many reasons. Whether it’s virus worries, social pressure, shyness or acne, some kids are just reluctant to ditch the mask. You see, there is a younger generation being shaped negatively by prolonged mask wearing. It has become their way of life, their way of expression, which is harming themselves more than protecting.

So my brethren, my point is with the relaxed in mask wearing measures, there must be a deliberate effort to start removing our mask as much as possible. 

My brethren, the image bearer of God has to start showing his image.

Remove your mask if you’re allowed to. Remove it when you are outdoors. Remove it whenever you could, whenever you are with your friends. Now, for those who are still donning their mask for fear of the virus, we must be scientific. Studies have shown that being outdoors greatly reduces your risk of infection with the coronavirus. One review of studies concluded that the odds of outdoor transmission is 19 times lower than indoor transmission. Outdoors’s transmission though possible, it is very unlikely.

Personally, I have an experience when one of my teenage children was infected a few months ago when the omicron virus was sweeping through everywhere. I kept him in the room, open all the windows. We open his doors throughout his infection. My wife and I clear his room every morning, send food to him, and neither of us nor anyone in my family were infected. My sense is the virus is not extremely contagious when we’re in open air, and that is back up by research.  

So don’t get skeptical when you are outdoors. Since last month, my daughter removed her mask every day when she took a 20 mins walk to school. Nothing happened to her too. And I can tell you she felt more surreal and freer when she does so. She became less afraid to look at people in the eyes, or to observe them, something which we have refrained from doing so for the last two years.

So my brethren, my advice is only wear a mask when you are unwell. Don’t wear it to feel comfortable and secure. The moment you realized you are doing it, something must ring in your mind to tell you that by doing so, it is not safe for you mentally and emotionally.