Don't Look Back In Anger
2020. You socked it to us. You came out fighting in January, raging with fire and by March, you entered the global ring, arms flailing, throwing punches every which way you could. You were relentless, barely taking a breath. We stumbled, dumbstruck and just staggered on, into the next relentless round, absorbing the jabs and downright humiliation.
2020. You went on and on and on.
You were the year when we literally lost our smiles, hidden behind masks that became the new normal. Eyes told the stories that the face couldn’t. They shone out with glee when we could finally see a friend or loved one and sank in with hurt when we witnessed the endless lines at the food banks.
You were a year when our horizons shrunk but our compassion grew. We witnessed the anguish of millions as their lives were torn apart. And our children finally understood that tomorrow isn’t a given.
Our home became our castle but also our keeper. Family thrown together for days on end as teenagers wings were clipped.
Home life revolved around the kitchen. Lunch, dinner, breakfast - always people, in the fridge, searching out the next meal. We nested and cooked. Waistlines expanded as menu fatigue set in.
For some of us, the lucky ones, we have thrived, at least in part. The work life balance simply became Work and Life. Our dogs became classmates, our kitchens the school dining halls. Our children have become the masters of their day from the confines of their bedrooms.
So what, 2020, have we learnt?
We learnt stillness. To simply be. We learnt patience and acceptance and that our lives are glorious, rich and diverse.
We stopped running for tomorrow when today was so uncertain. That human connections are what makes this whole thing work.
We learnt gratitude for what we had and what one day soon we will have again. We faced fear head on, like never before.
And, despite it all, we still believe in tomorrow. And we will be kinder, we will be wiser and we will be gracious.
And most of all, 2020, we will be alive.