My sons and I plan to catch a Chattanooga Red Wolves soccer game Sunday night as a Father’s Day outing. We’ll be at CHI Memorial Stadium in East Ridge shoulder-to-shoulder with other fans.
A year ago, with the pandemic simmering around us, this would have seemed reckless. Now, on the longest day of the year, it feels like we are finally basking in the light at the end of the pandemic tunnel.
Earlier this month, I drove our two sons, ages 19 and 14, to the Tennessee Riverpark to get their second COVID-19 vaccinations. The day we arrived, there was no car line. Back in March, I had waited about an hour in bumper-to-bumper traffic for my first shot.
As we sat in the car for our 20-minute post-inoculation timeout, I could feel my shoulders relaxing for the first time in about 15 months. (Full disclosure: Our youngest had a sleepless night filled with fever and chills after his second shot, but 48 hours later he was as good as new.)
As of this writing, only 42% of Tennessee adults (18+) are fully vaccinated, which means a majority – about 58% – are not. Polls this spring have consistently shown that about a quarter of Americans say they won’t get vaccinated – “ever don’t ask!” – which leaves an important middle group on the fence or just waiting for a convenient opportunity.