Let’s Begin Again

This month, it has officially been a year since the global COVID-19 pandemic hit my home state of Michigan. Looking back at my old social media posts and pictures of my family, I remember how scared and confused I was feeling when this threat became real to me. Now, I think about how naïve I was then. I thought the world was going to open back up by the end of the summer at the very least. I remember planning a few weeks of activities for my family to do at home and stocking up on a little extra food “just in case.” I remember wiping down all the groceries and leaving them in the car for a few days before bringing them into the house, all while we went shopping without masks, because we knew so little back then.

We live in a very different world now. I have cabin fever like I have never experienced before (and I have lived in Michigan my entire life). Wintering while social distancing was ROUGH. Grieving the traditional holiday celebrations made the already dark days and nights feel a little darker. We had a few positive cases among our loved ones and did our best to care for them at a safe distance. I’ve gotten pretty good at my care package game.

Now here we are, a year later. Vaccines are giving me some hope. I had my first mask-less indoor visitor this month. It felt weird and vulnerable, but also amazing. That visit gave me life and helped me to feel human again. I see light on the horizon. I have no idea what to expect moving forward. Trying to predict the future is exhausting and 2020 certainly drilled that point home (who completely filled their 2020 bingo card?). For now, I am just soaking up all the sunshine, enjoying what I can, and learning new ways to cope with this new world.

I hope you will join me.