I identify a lot with the article Les links here. I often think about whether my reporting could have been better.

I’ve been told I am responsible for people dying because something I wrote wasn’t up to snuff. https://twitter.com/perreaux/status/1390510442473218048
The thing that stung was the person in that case was partially right; I should have worked harder to get more information and data.

But I also am responsible for often more than a dozen articles PER DAY, a pace that has yet to reasonably slow down.
I know that I am not personally responsible for Ontario’s vaccination program or for Canada’s vaccine procurement, but in that moment, in the pile-on that said I was “creating another Trump” I felt like I was.
I try not to focus on the haters. I’ve had many people reach out to thank me for my work. I try to keep their kindness in mind.

I’m just one of many reporters covering this generational moment. It’s nice to know I’m having an impact.
But I still can’t help but think about whether I could’ve done more or done better sooner.
I’m fortunate that I’ve adapted to working from home pretty well. I have strong support systems in place and I had already laid a lot of mental health groundwork before this. I’m surviving.
But even not seeing, for example, the new variant cases in Ottawa *immediately* on Wednesday made me feel a little sick. I did write about it, but I should have seen in an hour or two earlier.
Would that have made a difference in case counts locally? No, of course not. But I do sometimes shoulder burdens that are not exclusively mine. I blame myself for a lot of things even if I shouldn’t.
Forgive me for this thread. Thanks for letting me indulge in some external introspection. That article just got to me in a way.

It’s been a long 14 months.
There’s some light. Vaccines are here. I’ll be eligible for mine soon. We will get through this and then begin the work of learning where we went wrong and where we can be better so that if there is a next time, God forbid, we’re better equipped to handle it.
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