Dear 2020,
I’m writing to you to express my empathy for the bad rap you’ve gotten over the last year. You’ve been beaten up, meme’d to death, made fun of, and generally hated by the populous. You’ve been treated the like the forgotten step-child, and speaking of forgotten, the desire of many is to get you over with so we all can move on.
Yet, I wonder, are you simply misunderstood? Are you really that bad? Are you a disguised blessing? Are you like a clam shell, holding within a pearl of beauty to those who take the time to pry you open?
I wonder…
I wonder if we’d simply choose to see you with a different lens…
A different mindset…
A different view…
Today, I choose to see the good. I choose to see the positive. I choose to be grateful.
Choosing is an active word. Not passive. I’m purposefully challenging my mind to see the good. It’s not easy. It’s not natural. What’s natural is to see the devastation around me, the chaos, the unemployed, the closed businesses, the unfounded racism, the partisan divide, the death, the pandemic…and upon seeing it all, to become depressed, anxious and give in to the fear.
Yet, I’m choosing. I’m finding the pearls… I’m going against what’s natural… I’m choosing to see you in a positive light. I’m choosing to remind myself of the blessings you brought me. I’m choosing to express my gratitude for you.
So… Thank you… Thank you for…
Life
Breath
Family…
Thank you for…
Clean water
Enough food
Warmth…
Thank you for…
Technology to remain connected
A platform to express and clarify my thinking
My glasses which bring the beauty of creation into focus…
Thank you for…
Frontline health care workers who chose their profession to help the sick
Non-profit organizations that met the needs of the un- or under employed
That I live in America, which gives me certain inalienable rights…
Thank you for…
Leaders who guide organizations and governments for the well-being of others
Small business owners who altered their business to keep us safe
Large corporations who switched from making their product to making PPE…
Thank you for…
Eliana who celebrated 14 in May
Kya who celebrated 12 in February
Everett who celebrated 9 in May…
Thank you for…
21 years with the love of my life
The vacation to the Ozarks and also to Michigan
Clients who trust me to steward their investments…
Thank you for…
Friends that checked in on me when they knew I was working around the clock during the market disruption
That client that chose to take her Investment Review time to pray for me instead of discussing the stock market
A team that held on together during the fastest bear market in history…
Thank you for…
Schools that fought to open in the Fall and teach our kids safely
Coaches that taught our young people to rise above adversity
Church leaders that encouraged us through His word…
I could go on.
2020, despite what you threw at us, humanity survived…some even thrived. We, as a global species, came together to map the genetic code of COVID-19 in just 11 days. From there, it was only a matter of time before a vaccine was produced, then trialed, now given to tens of thousands of us. We enter 2021, we’re equipped…ready…hopeful for what lies before us. 2020, you taught us that nothing is guaranteed, that nothing is sure, that preparation is key. Like an Olympian in the gym, we got our reps. The muscle memory is intact and in peak performance. Never again will we ‘expect’ the good. We earn it. We fight for it. We work for it. Thank you for that reminder.
As we transition from one year to the next, I say to you, “You will not be forgotten.” The lessons learned, while hard, will serve as reminders of the battle. We each have scars, we’re weary, beaten down…but not broken. The silver lining of the clouds grows bright. The sun will shine again. Our wounds will heal. Gratitude vanquishes all negative emotion. Hope abounds. Joy reigns. Peace is within our grasp.
2020, thank you. It was a good year after all…
Yet, I stand having reflected on what’s behind, now turning my gaze forward, my eyes widen…
Your Fellow Journeyman,
Tony
