Folk To Mask or Not To Mask — ‘ Tis Not A Question Story by Abby Cavenaugh • Instagram photos
It’s no secret that Southeastern North Carolina, like most of the rest of the world, has been in a public health crisis for nearly a year now, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Surely, back in March when this all started in the U.S., no one thought it would still be going on, nor that our Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s holidays would be so seriously affected. At the time of this writing, most Christmas events had been canceled for 2020, and most New Year’s celebrations have been canceled or dialed way back to avoid close crowds. It’s not ideal by any stretch of the imagination. But maybe — just maybe — if we make a few sacrifices now, we can return to normal sooner rather than later. As one of the memes floating around Facebook says, “Better to have a socially distanced Thanksgiving than an ICU Christmas.” A lot of people twist wearing a mask and social distancing into a political issue, but it’s really not. It’s a public health issue, plain and simple. No one is infringing on your rights by asking you to wear a mask. Just before Thanksgiving, a clerk in a Wilmington thrift shop handled it best, I think. I didn’t get her name, unfortunately, but I was shopping with my sister and niece (masks on) in the back of the store, when I heard the clerk stop someone and say, “Masks are required, ma’am.” With a fair
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