I was going to try and write something inspiring for the new year. An entry about hope and resilience, a testament to the human experience and how we can get through most things with positive thinking and each other. I was going to write a roundup of all the funny and strange things that happened this year that provided some levity and distraction from our failing systems. A few of those weird occurrences, like the shrimp guy or the saga of the gorilla glue lady.

So much has gone on last year that has made an impact on how we view the world and the responsibility of the governments around us. I was going to write about how leaders continuously make decisions that are clearly not putting people before profits. Instead lives are being put directly in danger to ensure the economy doesn’t get “shut down.” I was going to write about how the influx of unionizing, workers strikes, and walkouts is a direct reaction to how capitalistic structures are dehumanizing and debilitating to the livelihoods of millions.

I decided not to, though. So much has gone on this year that rehashing felt like more of a redundancy than a recap. Also because time feels like an illusion anyway. Plus I just saw Betty White passed and that news just threw me completely off. I do want to share one of my favorite stories about her -

Definitely going to be watching some Golden Girls for the next few days.

What I want to write about on the last day of 2021 is how grateful I am for the life I was able to lead last year and say thank you to all of the amazing, wonderful people in it who have in their own unique ways helped me grow, feel, process, and stay relatively sane during another year of disorder, disappointment, and despair. Practicing gratitude is something I want to do more of in the new year, because there is so much in this dark world that can be criticized and judged, but finding the light is a necessary balance. I found myself quite often this year wallowing in all the ills of the world and finding a weird contentment with calamity. It wasn’t healthy or helpful, so I want to make an intentional shift to not wallow so much. I can’t completely turn off my critical lens, but I can certainly do a better job at maintaining an equilibrium.

My heart goes out to those who’ve lost loved ones, who are continuing to experience hardships due to the negligence of systems, who are feeling alone and isolated, lost and wayward, and to those who are still managing to find themselves in the midst of all this chaos. This pandemic has changed us all and I don’t think we all know to the extent to which it has yet, but in time we will. I hope by that time we are all able to process with care and grace.

So here’s to 2021. May we get through another year of this pandemic with less trauma, more love, and a revolution.

I’ll close out with this video by Wrist featuring Torey Lanez. My cousin’s in it playing the flute! Very cool. Check out his TikTok, here!

Stay safe and have a happy new year!