If Omicron darkens the end of the year in Quebec and around the world, 2021 has reserved a clearer picture for us. To give some comfort, The duty delves into this series on moments or habits that we have been able to live or rediscover. Second memory: the reopening of the borders, which made it possible to reunite family and friends from the four corners of the globe.
The last time she saw her aunt and her French cousins, Megan Foy was at the end of high school and lived in a house with her parents in Sherbrooke. Since then, the journalism student has done half of a bachelor’s degree and moved to the Quebec metropolis.
“It’s been a few years since we saw them, there have been a lot of changes, both on their side and on ours. My cousin, the last time I saw her, she did not yet know how to speak, at least not easily, ”she told the Duty on December 16, while she was on her way to Sherbrooke to go find them.
“It’s a little weird not knowing [où ils sont rendus]. Yesterday, my mother and I wanted to buy gifts for the children, and we asked ourselves: “Does my cousin know how to read?” It’s silly, but we don’t know where they are at in life, we don’t know their passions. Do they like sports? The music ? »Relates the new Montrealer. She then finds the words for a situation that cannot be described: “It’s like getting to know your family again. “
Protective measure against COVID-19, the closure of borders partly explains this interval between visits, which have become as difficult to predict as a roll of the dice. This waiting on one side of the ocean and the other brings some apprehension about the reunion.
“Are they going to be happy to see me, are they going to know what to tell me?” »Asks the former Sherbrooke resident. His worries quickly dissipated, however, joy winning out over his questions. “It will allow us to start 2022 [sur de bonnes bases]. There is nothing negative, really just positive, but my mascara is sure to run off. “
Something promised, something due. A few days after this first call, Megan Foy gives news. And although she no longer has any make-up on her eyes, it is with the nails painted by her seven-year-old cousin that she says, audibly smiling: “It was full of emotions.” To see my cousin and my cousin, to see how much they had grown, it hit me. “
“We are so grateful that they are here. No way [qu’ils nous offrent] Christmas presents. They are here, and that is the gift, ”concludes the woman with family spirit.
The year of the first encounters
During the first confinement, in April 2020, Sara Sibri did like many souls in need of company (or entertainment) and opened a Tinder account. There are three pandemic waves, the dating application gave access to foreign profiles, a feature that the Quebecer of Moroccan origin then explored. “On a whim, I said to myself: ‘I’m going to go and see what there is to watch in Morocco.’ “
“Stroke of luck”, she meets her current lover, Youssef. In April 2021, a year after their first discussions, many kisses and hugs were exchanged, but only through the Web.
It is not because they did not try to give real ones earlier. A first trip was to take place the previous summer, then in the fall and finally in the spring. All departures have been called off, with COVID-19 being indifferent to their budding love.
“I had my calendar by my desk and I was counting the days,” she says. However, after the second postponement, hope faded. “At the beginning of November, it got worse. In addition to the two missed opportunities, the lag [horaire entre nous] increased [dû au changement d’heure]. So there were six hours, not five. We then really felt the effect of distance and confinement. “
A pause was called for, or, as they like to call it, a “collegial decision” was made. In February, perhaps thanks to Cupid, the couple started talking again.
“The virus is not what will stop us, on the contrary, it is what brought us together. Tinder would never have given the international option if it had not been for COVID-19, ”explains Sara Sibri.
Her salient optimism finally led her to meet Youssef in the flesh in Morocco during a memorable trip of a few weeks, in July 2021. And with this happiness, the sadness of the return: “The kisses through a screen n ‘no longer have the same value as before. “
But at least there are kisses, she thinks, eagerly awaiting the next easing to see her beloved Moroccan again.
New arrivals
On the occasion of American Thanksgiving, Marie-Michèle Marcoux was able to see her sister-in-law Isla again, but not only. She was also able to meet Jean and Iona, two little blond twins with blue eyes born in March 2021.
For the Quebecer living in Hawaii with her Scottish-born spouse, these births would, in normal times, have amply justified the trip to the United Kingdom, where her sister-in-law resides. “Except here, we can’t just jump on a plane and meet Isla’s babies.” The two families will therefore have joined halfway, in Chicago, to celebrate the new arrivals.
“It was super nice. We see little videos, but it’s not the same. In fact, we really got to know babies, see their personalities and get attached. It creates much stronger bonds. “
For the couple who are used to traveling, being away from those around them is not unusual. “What’s new is that we’ve always been just one plane ticket from our family. That’s the difficult end, ”admits the nomad.
Marie-Michèle Marcoux was also able to visit her mother in Quebec in September, a little over a year after leaving the province for the American archipelago. The reopening of the borders will therefore have enabled him to see several loved ones again.
From the first months of 2022, she should receive some friends as well as her mother-in-law, who resides in Namibia. “We can’t wait to see if all the pieces of the puzzle work out,” she said with her fingers crossed.