We’re in the final day of December, and I can’t help but feel an immense amount of everything — gratitude, grief, thankfulness, hope, and optimism. 2020 was an extraordinary year. It was a year that, for the rest of our lives, we’ll remember with equal parts heartache and fondness.
In the early months of 2020, everything changed. Pervasive fear and stay-at-home orders dismantled life as we knew it. Jobs were lost. Lives were lost. Small, local businesses closed their doors. Up in the attic or down in the basement, our suitcases collected dust. Our small, large, loud, silent, crowded, messy homes became our offices, schools, gyms, and sanctuaries. For better or for worse, we were catapulted into a different world. But against all odds, we’re still in motion. We’re moving forward. We’re trudging on. I have high and hopeful expectations for better days ahead. I hope you do, too.
But before the clock strikes midnight, I’m sitting in deep gratitude for 2020. After all, it was a year filled with beautiful silver linings. Most notably, we became parents. In turn, we embarked on the greatest, hardest responsibility of our lives. We spent countless hours together. We talked, we walked, we fought, and we loved. We read, we ate, we listened. We took ownership of our health. We grew our professions. We checked in on our friends and family. And as often as the busyness allowed, we stopped. We paused. We rested. We became acutely aware of our most abundant, mundane blessings.
With a very full heart, thank you for being here — for reading these words and propelling me to write from the heart. I appreciate you. From my screen to yours, have a joyful New Year’s Eve. And although I’ve said this before, it bears repeating: however you choose to safely gather right now, be it intimately or virtually, know that we’re in tandem with each other. We don’t have to be together, physically, to forge new memories and celebrate our humanity. The end of this holiday season has the capacity to be as magical and special as you make it.
A final note — because weight loss seems to be the pinnacle of all wellness content right now — no fad diet or form of restriction will get you where you want to be. Rather than focus on changing your body, observe how you can change the relationship you have with it. Here are a few books to get started: The Body Is Not an Apology, Get Out of Your Mind and Into Your Life, and More Than a Body. At any rate, I encourage you to think about what you want to prioritize in 2021. Maybe it’s a feeling, maybe it’s an experience, or maybe it’s a daily action. Whatever you choose to prioritize, do it with kindness and do it with humility. And remember, we can all make the best of what we already have.
Sayonara, 2020.
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