I am planning a family get-together to celebrate my granddaughter’s 14th birthday, and facing the challenges of inviting people with different vaccination statuses. It reminds me of planning the seating arrangements for a wedding or other big party. That’s when you need to keep in mind which of your guests are likely to get along with each other and can sit together and which ones have long-standing animosities so you should avoid having them sit together.
Our event is in a little over a week and I feel a responsibility to decrease any chances of COVID transmission. My husband and I completed our two-shot vaccination process over two months ago. Our granddaughter is too young to be vaccinated (although her age category is likely to come up soon). The other six people to be invited have different vaccination statuses:
- two just received their second shot… so it will be about two weeks before they are fully protected; and this is not until after our event
- one just got his first shot … so he will be in-between his first and second shot
- one had COVID recently, and is not yet eligible to start the vaccination process
- one is not vaccinated, and is an anti-vaxer (this is beyond vaccine hesitancy). She believes not enough research has been done to determine the long-term risks of the vaccination
- one has just moved here from another country and while testing negative for the virus before leaving, may not be eligible for the vaccination soon
So what should I do? I decided that the event has to be outdoors, Thankfully we are in the Spring, and temperatures have been rising. Hopefully the weather will be good. But how will I seat everyone? Should I put all the “not yet protected” folks together and six feet from the others? And from each other? I don’t think I can find a restaurant to manage that. And should I monitor everyone’s mask-wearing so that they have a mask on when they are not eating or drinking? What a way to have a celebration!
The news about the COVID virus variants now raises some concern that those who completed the vaccination process and thought they were fully protected may not be. And so when we get the whole family together this summer (there are about 20 of us), we may want to collect information on where everyone has been and what their potential exposure was, even those who are vaccinated.
And yesterday it was announced that while the COVID vaccines seems to be potent for at least six months, it is likely that a one-year booster may be needed. I think I will need a spreadsheet to keep track of everything.
Oy- this is getting very complicated.
Reflections on Aging 