Thanksgiving Break During COVID

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Covid-19 incredibly altered the way people spend and approach families on holidays- from making sure people visit others wearing masks to getting vaccinated.

Morgan McIntosh, Arts & Entertainment Staff Section Editor

COVID-19 modified the way people began to undergo their everyday activities, such as students shifting to E-learning and employees working remotely. But something else changed, too: how we enjoy our holidays. 

December 29th marks the day Marymount students come back from Thanksgiving break, and whilst returning to school, I had a chance to reflect back on how the ongoing pandemic impacted the ways people spent their period on break. 

For one, many families no longer hold the large, intricate family gatherings on Thanksgiving as they may normally undergo. I saw this observation in my own life: typically, my cousins fly out from Maryland for the holidays, in which my extended family is invited to a holiday feast at either my or my aunt’s house. With the recent change of events, my Maryland relatives stayed home, and the holiday was resultantly limited to just celebrating it with my intricate family and a couple of relatives, such as my aunt and uncle. 

Covid-19 incredibly altered the way people spend and approach families on holidays- from making sure people visit others wearing masks to getting vaccinated.

Such substantial changes within not only my family, but millions of others across the globe, symbolize how holidays like Thanksgiving pose a risk to further COVID-19 outbreak. People no longer hold the privilege of mindlessly visiting their extended family on days throughout the year that marks their only chance to see those geographically distant. Rather, the question of how they may be exposed to or expose others to the disease comes to mind, and as a result, many resort to spending special days in the comfort of their homes.

It is unfortunate that the pandemic posed such concerns to how individuals interact with their loved ones. Nevertheless, such a stressful time teaches us about the true meaning of family. Although I was bummed to not spend time with my out-of-state cousins, I made sure to call them and wish them a happy Thanksgiving, allowing us to spend time together remotely. When discussing the topic with my friend, she shared with me that her family and geographically-far relatives celebrated Thanksgiving together virtually, in which they connected over Zoom and played fun, holiday-themed remote games. 

As depicted in the image above, many families connected with others virtually over Thanksgiving break.

Thus, although COVID-19 hindered many from seeing others in person, the pandemic allowed individuals to brainstorm creative methods to connect with each other, ultimately allowing people to find light in a dark tunnel.