We Survived Thanksgiving 2020 Without A House Full Of Folks

Yes, believe it or not, we survived Thanksgiving 2020 without a house full of folks. I'm sure by now you are wondering and asking what is meant by the title? I'm glad you asked. I don't think it can be repeated enough that 2020 has been a year like no other. If I had a dollar for every time the word "unprecedented" was used this year, I'd be a very rich man right now. The COVID-19 coronavirus blindsided the world like no other in recent times. 

With the virus came guidelines and restrictions to stop it from spreading. Guidelines that were put in place for our safety, became foolishly politicized. Comparisons to slavery and the civil rights movement were ignorantly bandied about by those who hated being inconvenienced by not being able to go to the gym, restaurant, or to the bar. Our daily routines were indeed altered. Who knew when we learned of the virus in the first quarter of 2020 that we would still be grappling with it come the fourth quarter of 2020 and beyond? Vacations were canceled. Weddings, births, and deaths occurred in ways that were absent of customary rituals and celebrations. We actually spent more energy fighting to stay alive than we did living. We were and still are being treated as lepers not knowing if we are going to catch the virus from someone or give the virus to someone. 

The guidelines to keep us safe were met with much more resistance than needed, particularly the wearing of a face covering and not gathering indoors in large crowds. Folks stubbornly held large parties and blatantly refused to wear a face covering to the point of holding "No Mask Wearing" protests and rallies. The life of Michigan's Governor Gretchen Whitmer was threatened because of her desire to keep her state safe. There actually was a plot to kidnap her. Can you believe that? (Oh how far we've fallen). 

A face covering is a piece of cloth just as a seat belt is a piece of cloth. Both are worn for protection and the saving of lives. It has nothing to do with freedom or constitutional rights or anything political for that matter. One of the primary ways that the virus is spread is through droplets in our saliva that gets inhaled by others when in close proximity to one talking, coughing, sneezing, or any other way of expelling the droplets or mist containing the highly contagious germs. As a matter of fact for those who think they are complying by wearing the mask just over the mouth and not the nose too, might as well not wear the mask at all because it is through the nose, just like the mouth that the contagion enters the body. 

The politicization of the virus and safety guidelines did America far more harm than was needed. Other countries that followed their guidelines experienced a significant decrease in cases and deaths in comparison to the United States. We were so busy politicizing the disease that we cut off our nose to spite our face (no pun intended). 

Which brings me to my title. There were a whole bunch of folks who didn't think we would survive Thanksgiving without a cast of thousands (I'm being facetious and sarcastic but you get my point) in their houses sitting around the dinner table as we traditionally and customarily do. Guess what? We survived with two or three gathered. Believe it or not, thanks were still given, dinner was still had and people managed to make the best of a very challenging situation. The reason for this post is that it's going to be the same for Christmas and New Year's. The COVID-19 numbers have spiked back up causing the safety restrictions to be re-enacted and enforced especially where indoor crowds are concerned. It is winter and the weather is colder forcing most to be indoors. It is indoors in groups where the virus does its thing. 

So if we want to be able to get back to having the cast of thousands around the table for Thanksgiving in 2021, we must do what we need to do now in order for that to happen. Is it a sacrifice? Yes, it is. Do we want to at some point get back to some semblance of normalcy? Yes, we do. We won't get there any time soon however as long as there are those who stubbornly refuse to comply. At this point, we are our own COVID-19 worst enemies. The virus is not a hoax or a joke and you can ask anyone who has experienced it or the 300,000 plus family members who have lost a loved one to it. 

So come on folks, in the words of Sgt. Phil Esterhaus of Hill Street Blues "Let's be careful out there." Do not put yourself and your loved ones at risk by having large gatherings in your homes for the holidays or going out clubbing in densely populated bars. It's not worth it. Wash your hands frequently and stay six feet apart from each other and by all means, WEAR A MASK!!