We must normalize mental-health days

The recent holidays were not a vacation for so many but a scramble for tests. The omicron variant had us all preoccupied in one way or another, with delays and cancellations, compounding stress to our already deep-seated convictions that divided us at the dinner table or in the aisle of the planes. Another COVID-19 wave, another COVID breakpoint, more pandemic fatigue, more breakthroughs — both positive and negative.