As the horrific year of 2020 continues to fade into history, COVID-19 has been less and less thought about. 

Don’t get me wrong, it is quite understandable. With vaccinations and boosters being available to everyone, as well as mask restrictions lessening in most places, the world has started to feel as though life is returning back to “normal.”

However, life isn’t what it once was. COVID-19 is still very much a real disease, and with flu season passing by, people are continuing to get sick. 

Between the weeks of October 27-November 9, there were 3938 new positive cases of COVID-19 in San Diego alone. While that is around a three week period, and it’s nowhere near as bad as it once was, that’s still almost four thousand people that have gotten sick. For everyone testing positive while the world is ignoring COVID-19 again, they have to stay home and go through the emotional turmoil of being quarantined and having the disease that continues to spread like wildfire after all this time, and it’s not fair to them.

Furthermore, as autumn begins to come to a close and winter begins again, cold and flu season has heightened. Many students at Canyon Hills have had to stay home within the past few weeks, and almost everyone I know that went to the Homecoming dance came down with a cold afterwards (including myself). 

Right now, with the holidays right around the corner and the weather growing colder, it is incredibly important to continue to take precautions and stay safe from sickness and COVID-19. Everybody still needs to do their part for the community to fight these illnesses together. Washing hands regularly, staying home when ill, and wearing a mask in huge crowds are all very important things to continue to do as November comes to an end and we welcome December once again.