Dear 2020,
We know this year will feature in many history books and classes: the Year of the Pandemic. I wish I could say that this year has been fun, but the truth is it hasn’t. I don’t think you will be too shocked to hear that so many of us will be glad to see the back of you.
We are not naïve to think that 2021 won’t have its own challenges – but there is just something about this year that has left us longing for it to be over. We all have had our challenges, some we have handled well and others we haven’t. You have certainly highlighted our frailty and humanity.
It hasn’t all been doom and gloom. We won’t forget the Black Lives Matter movement, marriage equality for our LGBT+ community, a newly-elected US president, to name but a few.
You have robbed us of so much: health, jobs, education and even our loved ones. Don’t get me wrong, your attempt to pull us apart has actually pulled us together. You haven’t been kind to us, yet we have many times witnessed kindness rising up. In the midst of this year, unsung and unseen heroes have emerged.
Our minds have captured many bittersweet moments; those times where brokenness and beauty exist together.
As we face 2021, some of us are sprinting to your finish line, while the rest of us limp or even crawl. But we will get there. We are looking forward to crossing the line into a New Year – a fresh year.
It hasn’t all been doom and gloom. We won’t forget the Black Lives Matter movement, marriage equality for our LGBT+ community, a newly-elected US president, to name but a few.
We cling on to such great moments as they help us cultivate a spirit of thankfulness.
For those of us who have faith. We can testify to the goodness and presence of God. He has called us to ‘Forget the former things, do not dwell on the past. See I am doing a new thing. Now it springs up, do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.’ (Isa.43.) We have no doubt that spring is coming. We just need a moment to catch our breath and reset, before we finally say goodbye to you,
Unfortunately, you don’t get to keep Coronavirus. It will follow us into 2021. The trauma of Covid will live on, but I believe people will heal. Communities will heal. We will continue to fight this virus. We are thankful for the vaccine. There is hope – you do not get to rob us of this. We look forward to the days when we can unmask, hug, eat out, shop and be together again. That day will come. It may not come on your watch – but it will come!
Farewell, 2020.
