by reuven bulka
by the time you read this, i will hopefully be out of my 14-day quarantine. my “crime”: i went to the united states to officiate at my grandson’s wedding. i drove down, officiated, did not even take the chance of staying for the indoor meal after the outdoor ceremony, and drove right back.
secretly, i was hoping that by staying for such a short time, and observing all the canadian protocols, i would get a waiver and not have to quarantine for 14 days. but the officer at the border, god bless him, gave me no such break. he took my number, made sure i had a place to quarantine (i do), and gave me an information sheet should i need to call for covid-19 related matters.
and i did receive a few calls from the government covid-19 team to make sure i was in compliance. during the course of my “confinement,” i admittedly tried to bust out, legally of course. not just for fun. it was to officiate at an outdoor funeral service, with a mask and with six feet of physical distancing. i called various authorities, but the answer was always the same: 14 days, no bargains.
i then tried a different tactic. i asked a local authority at ottawa public health if being a member of the clergy was considered an essential service, and would then gain an exemption so i could attend prayer services at our synagogue, which was about to open with very tight restrictions. by the way, everyone at public health was extremely kind, patient and understanding.