After months of things being shut down or postponed, it was nice to have something to look forward to in Huntsville. The atmosphere of Fair on the Square was that of friendship, fun and happiness to be out enjoying each other’s company for the first time in a while.
The concert had the most college kids I have seen in one place for months, and everyone seemed to be having a great time. The fair the next day was a great chance for me to grab some much-missed fair food and for my fiancée to window shop.
While doing all of these activities provided a great distraction from what is going on in the rest of the world, we must not forget that our country is still dealing with a deadly virus.
There shouldn’t be mandatory mask laws in this pandemic. We are adults, and American citizens, and should be treated as such. Everyone should want to protect our fellow citizens and shouldn’t be threatened with fines or jail.
However, most people were not wearing face coverings or minding social distancing as well as they could at Fair on the Square. While the argument could be made that the event was outside, therefore carrying a much lower risk of transmission of COVID-19, the danger is still there.
It is very important to be mindful of spreading germs as the fall season approaches. Cases of COVID-19 have been on a steady rise, according to Worldometer, coinciding with the start of fall and reopening of college campuses.
If we want to get the country back on track and keep having events like this, we need to be careful.
Personal hygiene, mindful social distancing and face masks are the best weapons we have at the moment, and we need to be ready to use them.
Each of us needs a carefully tuned risk/reward system when making decisions. This includes thinking about how many people are going to be there or how necessary the need is to go to a certain event.
All should use their own personal judgment.
I tried to keep my distance from others when I could and made sure to keep my hands clean and away from my face. I still had a great time while doing it. If we can all keep these habits up, events like Fair on the Square will be able to keep happening.