Since March, we have all missed our friends, school and social gatherings. However, that isn’t a reason to put others lives at risk. Maskless indoor gatherings are easily avoidable, but are disproportionately the main reason for the spread of Covid, according to Boy Genius Report. Dr. Anthony Fauci created a list of eight activities to avoid in order to avoid spreading the virus, at the top of that list is indoor gatherings, which shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone.

Those partying and spreading Covid are the primary reason that the pandemic has gone on for as long as it has (aside from poor leadership and government handling of the crisis). If we all followed CDC guidelines, we would much sooner be able to go to indoor gatherings without having to worry about killing someone as a result.

A study by Jama Network revealed that 59% of COVID cases stem from asymptomatic spread. It’s commonly known that younger people show milder symptoms, if any at all, making them much more likely to spread Covid without even being aware that they’re carrying the virus.

Sophomore Jamie Geringer has found a way to stay COVID safe while still being able to see two of her closest friends: the pod system. It was set up by Geringer and her friends’ parents and ensures that they don’t see anyone outside of these three families. She said that she has received criticism over her pod system, but Geringer’s therapist recommended this system because “isolation is never good” for mental health, she noted.

Geringer feels that there should be a fine for those hosting indoor, maskless gatherings, and that people attending are “part of the problem.”

She said that “one reckless decision could be costing someone their life, so please stop and think about the people you could be affecting” before attending a gathering.

If there were a live tiger at a party, you would never bring it home and hand it to your mom. So why would you leave knowing that you could bring back a deadly disease that could kill her?

Please, consider the lives you could be putting at risk when you don’t practice Covid safety. Attending gatherings is gambling with human lives. We all want the pandemic to end. Tt’s every individual person’s responsibility to wear a mask and avoid large gatherings to stop the spread.

We’re in this together; we’re lonely and want to be seeing our friends. It’s cold out, and masks can get uncomfortable after long periods of time. But you know what’s colder, lonelier and more uncomfortable? A hospital bed surrounded by none of your loved ones.