As most days begin, I woke up thinking about my kids.
On Monday, May 17, the three of them ventured out on their separate ways, two going to school, and one headed off to work. The oldest one hadn’t been to work since Pres. Joe Biden announced that vaccinated individuals could go without their masks in public places; and she was anxious about what that would look like as she greeted customers at the coffee shop.
We talk a lot about mask-wearing in our house. In the last 15 months, we’ve only dined out a handful of times, but each time we’ve sat outside. All of us mask-up when the waiter comes to the table while my middle daughter is insistent that we keep our masks on when we aren’t eating.
My oldest constantly comes home with stories about people pulling their masks down to talk or tucking their face into their shirt. For the most part, these stories have been the exception as most people have followed the mandate.
With that said, we have entered a new phase of the pandemic: one where we will now operate on the honor system. If you’ve been vaccinated, you can go without your mask. If you aren’t, then please put your mask on while in public.
On May 13, the girls and I talked about what this new mandate means for our lives. We decided that if we are in a setting where we know the people have been vaccinated, then we will feel comfortable taking our masks off. And we feel okay taking our masks off outside, as long as we are socially distanced.
But, we all agreed that when we grocery shop or go to school or at a restaurant, we will keep our masks on.
You see, the decision isn’t just with our own safety in mind. From the very beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak, our daily decisions have not been based on our own interests or personal freedoms. Our hearts have been turned towards the collective: our grandparents, our friends with autoimmune disease, our elderly neighbors, our teachers, doctors and food-service friends. From the very beginning, we’ve realized that there is no magical formula in knowing who COVID-19 is going to affect short-term, long-term or whose life it would take.
And the same holds true now. We know that even though we’ve been vaccinated, we can still carry the COVID-19 virus. And we can still spread the virus through tiny, invisible droplets that can be captured
by simply wearing a mask.
While I’m getting tired of wearing (and remembering) my mask, my kids remind me that it’s just a small step we can all take to protect one another.
At some point, the vast majority of the population will have had a chance to be vaccinated. But we are not there yet.
Two days before Biden made his announcement about masks, the FDA gave emergency use approval for the Pfizer vaccine for children ages 12-15. Those doses weren’t even available until late last week.
While there are still plenty of people in the United States and beyond who have not had access to the COVID-19 vaccine, some children are just now getting access to that. And while children are less likely to have adverse reactions to COVID, there are children who do. Some of those at higher risk have spent the last 15 months in isolation.
At some point, we may have a vaccine for all ages. At some point, there will come a time when we’ve all had an opportunity to decide whether or not to vaccinate ourselves or our children. When that day
comes, then it will be time for me and my family to remove our masks and go about our lives.
Until then, whenever that is, I will think about the 3-year old child at the grocery store; the children in our school district with cystic fibrosis; the waiter who hasn’t had a day off to get the vaccine; the
junior at Paxton-Buckley-Loda High School who recently lost his life to COVID-19.
There are so many things in this life that are not only about me or you individually. Whether you’re vaccinated or not, whether you trust in the honor system or not, please continue to wear your masks as we continue to work together towards something that benefits all of us.
This is a telling time for the world including the US, including Illinois, including Mahomet, including each of us. I am not optimistic that people who have based their decisions on politics or pseudo-science for themselves and their families will suddenly understand or respect science-based recommendations. Having said that, I hope people remember and follow a simple guideline – if you’re not fully vaccinated, wear a mask until two weeks after you are fully vaccinated. Pretty simple.