To the Man Who Refused to Wear a Mask on the Airplane

I have been a nervous wreck all day. At about 9 a.m. this morning, my fiancé boarded a flight to Florida. In case you missed it, Florida just announced a severe surge in COVID-19 cases and has yet again closed many of its businesses. As if that’s not bad enough, he’s boarding an airplane, which doesn’t sound corona-proof to me.

Then my worst fear came true: the passenger next to my fiancé refused to wear a mask.

You have to be kidding me.

I told him to text me when he landed to ease some of my anxiety. He called me and I could tell he was a little on edge. He proceeded to tell me that the man sitting next to him refused to wear his mask the entire flight. He never gave a reason, he just simply refused. I am all for freedom of choice, but not when it concerns the health and safety of others around you.

To this stranger, I say to you, you’re irresponsible, and if my fiancé ends up ill, I will pull a Liam Neeson and I will find you. How could someone be so irresponsible? Why didn’t the airline insist that this gentleman wear a mask, seeing as it was clearly a rule for the rest of the passengers?

I was nervous for my fiancé to board that plane and go to a destination that is certainly suffering through this pandemic. But now, I am even more concerned about his health. My biggest fear may come true because a random guy didn’t find it necessary to follow the country’s rules.

People seem to forget that wearing a mask is to protect OTHERS from potentially getting it from YOU and not the other way around.