The holiday season is in full swing at Macy’s on Chicago's State Street, and for some people it’s a family tradition to take pictures at the holiday windows.
“It’s so different, you know; it’s a fraction of the people that are normally down here especially this time of the year," said Bryant Whiteford from Orland Park.
Whiteford plans to spend Christmas at home with his immediate family, including his three daughters.
“It’s a bit different this year. We won’t get to see all the family we usually do, but it’s temporary so we’re making the best of what we got," he said.
Precious Bahena plans to do the same.
“I have a pretty big family so it goes over the limitations I think," said Bahena, who is a freshman at Illinois State University. "So we’re just doing something with immediate family, so just like my sisters and my cousins and a couple of people."
Erika Auger said she and her husband have no plans to travel this Christmas.
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“For Christmas it will just be us, the three of us, and our 4-month-old baby at home,” said Auger. “We won’t be seeing family; we’ll just be staying put, just the four of us.”
Auger is doing everything to stay safe and knows it’s not worth the risk since her mom got COVID back in October.
"We’ve seen firsthand how extremely detrimental this virus is,” said Auger. “We just all want to stay safe this year and hopefully next year we'll all get to be together again.”
Dr. Anthony Fauci, who is a member of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, talked about his holiday plans at the Milken Institute Future of Health Summit.
"You know I have three daughters in their late 20s and early 30s, and for the first time in more than 30 years, I'm not spending the Christmas holiday with my daughters,” said Dr. Fauci.
Health officials are worried we could see a rise in cases in a matter of weeks and have urged people not to travel for Christmas and New Year’s Eve.
“At this point I will say not to travel, to stay home. There’s really no place in the United States that’s safe,” said Dr. Rachel Rubin, senior medical officer at the Cook County Department of Public Health.
Dr. Rubin believes its best to stay home, keep your inner circle small and connect virtually.
“I know everybody has Zoom fatigue, but it's okay. Get on and raise a glass to the holidays with your family on Zoom,” she said. “Do other virtual kinds of activities because we really shouldn't be in each other's breathing space during this holiday season.”
