2020. Need I say more?
I was going to title this post 2020: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, but we all know that 2020 is self-explanatory. Some worldwide events to just recap the year:
- The year of working from home
- The year of social distancing
- The year that masks became a norm
- Black Lives Matter
- Lockdown
- Quarantine
- Multiple business closures
- Zoom's exponential growth
- Financial aid for all
And obviously, THE YEAR OF COVID-19.
The worldwide pandemic has caused us all to change our way of life. It has evoked feelings of fear in all of us, but at the same time, it has made us a lot more grateful for all that we do have.
Pre-pandemic, we all coveted the lives of others. We all wanted to go travelling, buy a big house, throw expensive parties with our many friends...and now that idea of living has changed. These days, we just want to survive and, maybe occasionally, do something we love. We have started to cherish the ones we love and to understand that everything, no matter how certain it is today, is impermanent. We have realized that we only have each other and the ones we love, but that it can all be taken away from us.
Although we are still quite divided as a species, we have started to come together to take care of one another. Wearing a mask is not only essential, but a sign that we care about the health of others. We have started to become more of a community.
Also, in spite of it all, I have seen the power of the human spirit.
No matter what obstacle we have faced this year, we have managed to prevail. In my region, all non-essential services are closed from December 25, 2020 - January 11th, 2021. This will probably cause many businesses to take a huge financial hit. However, a lot more shops have started up online websites to continue to accommodate their clients. As for restaurants, who usually offered in-house choices, they have started offering delivery and created better take-out options. In the end, we all have no choice but to adapt to the new normal.
On December 26th, I decided to take a drive down to the shopping mall to see how empty the parking lot was. Although I was heartbroken to know so many businesses would not be receiving clients on one of the biggest shopping days of the year, I saw people holding socially distanced get-togethers in their cars. An otherwise empty parking lot was the perfect place for people to get-together, and that warmed my heart. This event alone is what inspired me to write this post today.
No matter what tragic event may happen in the world, there is always some good that will prevail. People seek to find answers, and if they do not, then they seek to find one another. We are social creatures by default, so our instinct is to come together to either work together or appreciate one another. Throughout the pandemic, this is one thing that has remained constant.
This year is one of loss; one that has changed our worldview for our foreseeable future. And yet, we have become more human because of it. I hope that the human spirit continues to prevail into the new year, as we face more uncertainty, and that we keep in mind the values that we have learned during these troubling times.
With 2020 nearing its end, the year has passed by fast and slow and a lot of us have suffered in terms of our mental and physical health. In the end, I hope that we continue to be kind to each other and kind to ourselves.
Have a very Happy and healthy new year.
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