My whole understanding of the plague years changed when I really understood what a flagellant is. There were roving bands of hundreds or even thousands of homeless men packed in a tight formation. They went from town to town breaking any kind of local quarantine measures where permitted. They whipped themselves bloody in public and then villagers would collect that blood and dab their eyes with it. It was done out of pure religious conviction.

I imagine being a bird doctor. Not really sure of what I'm doing but trying my best with the closest thing I've got to a materialist understanding of the plague. Painstakingly cleaning my uniform, checking the leather for holes, filling the mask with herbs. I go to my window for a brief pause before starting my day in the plague ward. What do I see? An antimasker rally spreading variants from around the country. It's one of those historical moments where I really feel the :agony-shivering: of the poor schmuck.