All the while, we've tried to allow them to live as normal of a life as possible under the pandemic's circumstances. They've been attending school in person for the entire school year. They've kept doing School of Rock. They've gotten together with friends. Everything they've done outside of the home is under strict COVID-19 mitigation and safety protocols—masked, distanced, and as safe as possible. In balance, these allowances have enabled them to keep their teen and preteen sanity, which one cannot undervalue.
But now, really, really soon, they'll be able to join my wife and me among the tribe of the vaccinated. And we have science to thank.
So, today, let's all say a collective "thank you" to the marvel of science … and by extension all of the scientists that helped research, develop, and perfect these vaccines. In a mere matter of months, science cracked COVID-19's genome, which allowed science to apply that knowledge to an mRNA vaccine that science has been researching and developing for decades. Science permits hundreds of millions of people in the U.S., and billions globally, to obtain a vaccine that will return us to some semblance of a normal life.
We can dine in restaurants again. We can travel again. We can attend concerts again. I can hug my parents again. And I can stop worrying (more or less) that COVID-19 will kill my son.
So, please, get your shot. If you're at all hesitant, do your research from legitimate sources (e.g., here, here, here, and here).
We should all love and trust science. I know I do. And if you do, too, there's no reason not to get vaccinated now. Our collective health, safety, and sanity depend on it.
* Photo by Vlad Tchompalov on Unsplash