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We Are Still Open, in Context
I took a photo yesterday that explains the year. It’s about adaptation, and, ultimately, survival. It also addresses another dilemma: depending on the context of a place, or my mindset at different times, I find it hard to have confidence in what I see. I need the back story, which starts with a tale of two retail chains on the High Street of an English town.
As an essential service (health and nutrition), Holland & Barrett has remained open in one form or another through various phases of lockdown. In the distance, looking up Newbury’s Northbrook Street, the Cote Brasserie sign shines on, despite a pending move of Berkshire County to England’s Tier 3. By Saturday, it will be a restaurant with takeout only, like November, or last June.
Meanwhile, to the right, a masked woman moves forward, her confident stride the stuff of newspaper articles about how to get by in these trying times. Some months ago, masks were not always part of the toolkit.
Most who read this far will see my intended messages about the roles of ambiguity and perseverance. Just like Holland & Barrett’s Newbury store, we have encountered both in adjusting to adversity. As the sign proudly proclaims the store has changed with these times, and so have we.
