New Year. New Way.
Life in 2020 was weird, to say the very least.
2020 was a time of fear, isolation, and unrest for many of us. It revealed to us that we might need to change who we interact with and how we interact with them. We learned new rules in 2020, like the difference between “safer at home” and “shelter in place.” We changed the way we shop for groceries, go out for dinner, and plan date nights. We placed a pause on meeting new people and networking. Some of us had to adjust to working from home, aiding in virtual learning for children, and adapting our work to 8-hour-long Zoom calls.
Others of us adjusted to working each day away from our homes, not knowing if we were facing potential risk with each passing coworker. Many of us were on the front lines, knowingly exposing ourselves to a deadly virus in order to aid others in this time of struggle. Still, others of us faced the uncertainty of unemployment, not knowing how to make ends meet in a time when businesses were closing left and right.
2020 was confusing, infuriating, and devastating.
2020 introduced us to a brand new adversary--a virus that does not care who you are, what you have, or where you live. With information changing from month to month, case numbers rising, ICU beds filling up, 2020 was understandably full of worry. Some of us lost loved ones due to complications from Covid-19. Some of us lost loved ones due to repercussions of loneliness, worry, depression, and fatigue.
2020 was confusing, infuriating, and devastating.
2020 was a year filled with political division, a much-needed racial reckoning, and a changed view of what "safe" looks like for many of us. It illuminated differences in thought amongst families, neighbors, and friends. Many white people began to wake up to the racist, oppressive reality that BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, Persons of Color) have been facing for years.
2020 was confusing, infuriating, and devastating.
And...even (perhaps, especially) in the midst of confusion, fury, and devastation, 2020 offered us gift upon gift, grace upon grace. 2020 taught us to adapt. 2020 taught us to slow down. 2020 revealed to us our closest people, our bubble. 2020 taught us to set boundaries. 2020 taught us to speak up for our needs. 2020 taught us how much we really can take, even when it felt like it was taking everything. Even when we broke. Even if we are still breaking, we are here. We made it to 2021.
As we find ourselves in the first week of the New Year, we’re likely to be inundated with talk and social media posts of New Year's Resolutions. This year things will be different! I'm really going to turn my life around. Goodbye, 2020, because 2021 is here and there is going to be a new me! Oftentimes we set a resolution, an intention for the New Year, stick to it for a little while, but forget about it once the inevitable busy-ness and chaos of our lives ensue.
This year, more than ever, what if we made a firm decision to not go back to the way things were? What if we crafted New Year’s Resolutions that help us discover peaceful ways of solving our problems of hurt, loneliness, and anger? What if we resolved to lean into difference and learn new ways of being?
These are not easy tasks, and learning new ways of being takes time. And? We do not go into this New Year alone. Recognizing and honoring the gifts that 2020 gave us can help us face the road ahead with patience, resilience, adaptability, compassion, and hope.
So, we might take a minute to make a list of what was learned in 2020 and how these learnings will help us live differently in 2021. The list might make its way to the bathroom mirror or the bedside table, serving as a reminder of how far we’ve come and the hope that awaits us as we continue to move forward.
