Pioneers, we’re quickly approaching the holiday season. That means your favorite things: some freedom from the weight of classes, amazing home-cooked meals and quality time with your loved ones, just to name a few. But as we are all aware, this is no ordinary holiday season. We are experiencing Thanksgiving, Kwanzaa, Christmas, Hanukkah, and a whole host of holidays during a global pandemic. 

Active coronavirus case numbers are now just as bad if not worse than they were in March and April. Hospitals are bracing for the worst, nursing homes and schools are regularly experiencing outbreaks, and countries internationally are reinstituting shutdowns and restrictions. 

Contact tracers have reported that much of this newest wave is linked to large gatherings and not wearing masks. There has always been a certain apathy towards social distancing and mask wearing even from the beginning of the pandemic, but that sentiment came from the same people who distrust scientists about climate change. However, we are now seeing an overwhelming number of people, regardless of political ideology, age, income bracket, etc., disregarding the CDC guidelines out of a sense of fatigue. 

We get it, Pioneers, we really do. The coronavirus pandemic has been exhausting for everyone involved. Remembering to wear your mask when you’re outside of your own living space, keeping social interaction at a minimum, not being able to travel, all of this has had an emotional toll. 

But what will have even more of an emotional toll is if we are inundated with more deaths of Americans due to the coronavirus. 

While people in our age range typically recover from COVID-19, there have still been plenty of deaths of people ages 19-24 in relation to this virus. Furthermore, with the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, you or your parents may be excited and pushing to see your older relatives like you normally do. But, with the nature of this virus, you may not know you are infected until it is too late, and you may infect another relative who is more susceptible to the virus than you are. 

We at The Globe obviously cannot police your activities during the break, nor do we honestly want to. You may even wonder why we are discussing this in this week’s editorial when we are all moving to remote instruction after the break. But we would like for all Pioneers to still wear their masks, limit the number and size of gatherings and generally stay safe because we care. We care if you get COVID-19. We care if your loved ones get COVID-19. Our Point Park community is only as strong as the people who are in it, and if we lost anyone on campus due to the virus, we would absolutely be gutted. 

Stay safe and stay sane this holiday, Pioneers.