Well, it seems a year has passed since the US declared COVID-19 a pandemic. I’m reminding myself it’s only been a year because it seems like ten, or a trillion or something. I remember when I first wore a mask in public, at least in 2020. (I wore one to visit my newborn grandson in the hospital in 2019 because I had a cold, but in the hospital masks aren’t unusual.) I felt a little self-conscious a year ago. There were people without masks staring at me. But not now. Now, everyone has one in order to go shopping. No big deal.
There was a whole lot of unknowns back in March 2020. Actually, there always is, we just don’t think about that like we have been lately. I remember Biden predicting a long, hard winter. This past January was the deadliest of the pandemic in the US. Nearly 80,000 people died from it in that terrible month, including my sister Bev. No one in my close family has gotten it so far, thankfully, but I think most everyone has known someone who was very ill or died from it. If you haven’t, be thankful. This will affect us in many ways for a very long time, maybe forever.
The dark winter is ending now. Spring always comes, doesn’t it? Light overtakes darkness. Hope springs forth eventually.
A friend shared an article that I think provides a good summary. It’s certainly true that no one predicted what life threw at us a year ago and likewise no one predicted what we’ve got at the moment. It’s short. Worth a read.
America’s Nightmarish Year is Finally Ending by Sam Baker
During another dark time in our history, the Civil War, poet Emily Dickinson wrote a poem titled Hope is the Thing With Feathers. It begins this way:
“Hope” is the thing with feathers –
That perches in the soul –
And sings the tune without the words –
And never stops – at all –
So now that the worse is over, what have we learned? Take care of your health? Cherish the moments you spend with your family? Appreciate those who work in the service industry–healthcare, restaurant, retail…? Don’t hoard toilet paper? Wash your hands thoroughly? Stay home when you’re sick? Keep in touch virtually?
I’m sure we each have a long list, and that’s good! What has this past year taught you?
