My next of kin and acquaintances include people who have been vaccinated against the coronavirus with three doses. There are also those who have opted out of vaccination for various reasons. I know their reasons, and they are all correct in a way.

I also have a close relative who cannot get vaccinated due to health reasons and whose social life will become rather complicated after new coronavirus measures will no longer recognize negative test results in place of Covid certificates. But they are not complaining because they know the risk of what could happen if they fell ill.

It has been over eight months since I got my second shot. I would have gotten the booster shot last week were I not out of the country. The possibility is there for everyone today. Just as it is possible to get the first and second doses if one hasn't had the chance yet.

Arguments speaking in favor of vaccination have been the most convincing for me. The dimension of social security and well-being is also a part of this equation for me, as is my sincere desire to lessen the workload of the medical sector and the people working there.

We need to manage risks to their physical and mental health. The question is how to support doctors, nurses and everyone else fighting to save lives and jeopardized by the virus in the most direct way. We can pray for them, while we can also contribute by not giving them more work.

Composure and common sense are leaving the vaccination debate. Even in a situation where I see multiple legal problems in terms of limiting personal freedoms, I do not deem it possible to overlook the common good, love for my fellow man and general security in favor of individual interests and desires.

No one needs an even tenser society or explosive collective stress. This requires us to sue for peace and give measures time to work. But first, we need to comply with those measures instead of ignoring them.

At any rate, we have arrived in a situation where physical contacts should be dialed back, crowded places, events and gatherings avoided. Even though the effectiveness of wearing a mask has been questioned, it has not been proven that wearing one is harmful or even helps spread the virus.

We know that masks helped contain the spread of other, more common viral infections last season. Logic would suggest they have the same effect in the case of the coronavirus.

If wearing a mask helps keep open grocery stores, and more importantly also churches, why not wear one? Including those who have been vaccinated or have recovered from the disease. We need a mask everywhere we come into contact with people not of our household.

I will get my booster shot as soon as I arrive back in Estonia a few days from now. It is a personal decision for which I have weighed many arguments for and against, while getting vaccinated has clearly come out on top. I see no religious or moral arguments that would keep me from getting vaccinated. Especially since it has been possible to choose between different vaccines.

I am convinced that by getting vaccinated, wearing a mask and limiting physical contacts, I can manage risks that can manifest should I come into contact with next of kin, friends and even strangers some of whom still haven't vaccinated. It is difficult to convince or motivate others to behave a certain way. However, we can always take precautions so that other people, loved ones would not have to suffer because of us.

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