I’m not sure what the headline should be.
Having received the third Pfizer booster shot on Sunday, it wouldn’t be an understatement to say that it certainly wasn’t as exciting as getting the first two.
Back then, in the heady days of the vaccine rollout against COVID-19, there was a palpable sense of lightness, even euphoria, at the massive makeshift Maccabi Healthcare Services clinic that had been erected in the Payis Arena in Jerusalem.
People took selfies, and the mood was celebratory. We were going to beat corona… or at least, make ourselves immune to it.
While the latter has been proven more or less correct for the last few months, the former was wishful thinking. That’s why the thrill was gone when the third jab was administered at my local Maccabi clinic.
The general feeling among the over-60s who shuffled in and out was that this third vaccine was not going to be the charm, but a recurring event for as long as COVID sticks around.
Amit, an upbeat female army medic who had been called up for reserve duty for a week of nonstop needles, made it a pleasant experience. But the optimism and hope the nation felt at the beginning of the year that vaccinations might eradicate the lethal virus have made way for resigned dread that a new normal is upon us.
What are the implications of injecting viruses into our bodies on a regular basis? Do the risks outweigh the benefits? Those are some of the questions Israelis of a certain age are asking themselves, even as they show up for their vaccine.
But for half a million 60-plus Israelis, as of Monday at least, the prospect of not being able to see children or grandchildren, especially as the High Holy Days approach, and the likelihood of contracting the virus is a weightier consideration than that very few people on Earth have received a third dose of the vaccine.
Will we be returning for a fourth or fifth dose in the coming months? It’s a distinct possibility as new and stronger variants appear on the horizon.
Of course, the third time could be a charm, especially if the government opens it up to under-60s and most of the population takes advantage of the offer.
But that feeling when getting the first and second shots will never return. As Amit said while rubbing my arm with an alcohol swab: “When I did this a few months ago, people were so excited. Today, they seem reluctant or just sad.”
That’s a common reaction when you’re seeing a movie for the second or third time. We don’t know the final outcome, but this script isn’t necessarily going to have the storybook Hollywood ending that we all hoped for at the beginning of the year.