On Dec. 31, 2019, we had a celebration in Fairpark like no other. We rang in 2020 and Tupelo’s 150th Birthday with jubilation and hope. No one could have predicted what the months to come would hold.
As winter turned into spring, we found ourselves in the unchartered territory of a global pandemic. We saw shortages of basic items like hand sanitizer, cleaning products, and … surprisingly … toilet paper. We dealt with the closures of our businesses, restaurants and schools. We worked from home, learned to meet with our family and friends through computer screens, and put many of our celebrations, gatherings and plans on hold. Old, familiar words like social distancing, flattening the curve, quarantine, Zoom, distance learning, face masks, and executive orders took on a new meaning. We saw our community stricken with the COVID-19 illness, and too many of our loved ones succumbed to death.
Besides a global pandemic, our nation has been traumatized this year with economic challenges, racial division, and a polarized electorate. 2020 has been deeply painful for us all, but undoubtedly for some much more than others. It has not been the year we expected. It has been frustrating, sad and grim. As we bid 2020 farewell with a sigh of relief, we can reflect on what we have endured and what we have learned. Here’s the good news. If you are reading this, you are a survivor of what has been one of our darkest times in history.
Let’s talk a bit about hope. Charles Spurgeon said, “Hope itself is like a star – not to be seen in the sunshine of prosperity, and only to be discovered in the night of adversity.” We look with hope to 2021 as a year of recovery and healing. We are relieved that the COVID-19 vaccine is now making its way to our community. This alone gives us a glimmer of hope that our lives can resume some semblance of normalcy by summer, based on projections of the health community. Dr. Anthony Fauci predicts the U.S. could achieve early stages of herd immunity against the deadly coronavirus by late spring or summer, adding that 50% would have to get vaccinated to make an impact, with 75-85% needed to have a blanket of herd immunity.
What I’m most looking forward to in 2021 is gaining back the health of our community and being able to gather with family and friends. We need to connect with our extended families and to enjoy events and celebrations. We need to give hugs and high-fives. We desperately need these connections with each other.
Changed by what we have been through together, we will not start 2021 with the complacent naivety of Jan. 1, 2020. We now have the knowledge, understanding, and hard lessons learned from this past year. Let us never forget what we have experienced. May our hardships provide wisdom and guidance for the future, and serve as a reminder to live in appreciation of each day and the blessings in even the smallest of things. I wish each of you a Happy New Year and a healthy, prosperous 2021.
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December 29, 2020 at 05:00PM
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JASON SHELTON: May the new year be filled with hope - Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal
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