I have the feeling that the year 2020 will enter our vocabulary the same way 9/11 did.

This year will change everything. Living and surviving in 2020 is a remarkable experience. 

Navigating the waters of uncertainty right now, I have the chance to imagine how I would like to look back on this year. What will we think and say about 2020? 

Remember 2020? It was the year the whole world was hit by a pandemic, which made us all realize our true interdependence.

Some people talked about this concept before, but we waived our hands and went on our way, because our disconnection was stronger.

In 2020, we learned that we don’t have that choice anymore. We are one huge collective being: the human race. We breathe together, we walk together, we live or die together. We all know this now first-hand. 

The virus did not differentiate between nations, wallets, social status, races, colour, or sexual orientation, but it did show us just how truly the same we all are inside. Some people talked about this concept before, and to be honest, most of us were already on board, but in 2020, we had to choose to put all animosity and judgement aside collectively. 

Seeing the suffering of our elderly and weak, we learned to appreciate this age group even more. Since then, we sit with them more. We listen to their stories. That’s all they ever wanted. Quality life.

We don’t rush so much to move on with our lives now. 

Oh, and speaking of rushing…we needed a mandatory global quarantine to realize that we actually can stay home sometimes. That we do have enough. We canceled the outward journeys to take more time for the inward ones. And we were fine. We learned to eat at home, grow food at home, exercise at home, study at home, have conversations, sleep more, do less.

At the end of the quarantine, no one wanted to go back to their rat race, so we all live a much more simple, but healthier life. 

Our cars sit in the driveway more now, we walk to wherever we can, whenever we can. The air is cleaner because of this.

When we meet others, we look at them, because human contact has become the most precious commodity. We had to lose it to appreciate it, but isn’t that how we all learn? 

The global economy, which was built on wrong foundations, collapsed. 

There were those people who tried using this year to generate profit still, of course. But collectively, we have decided that co-operation and life on Earth are more important than profit. So we created a new kind of economy, based on honesty and fairness. It took a few years, but it’s working now. 

When we realized how this pandemic started, we awakened to a greater compassion toward our planet’s animals. We understood finally just how dangerous it was to enslave, torture, and consume other living beings when we realized that we create our own death penalty by doing these things. Since then, animal slavery is nonexistent. The whole world is less violent because of how we all changed our diet. 

Yes, there was a lot of fear of the unknown, I remember the feeling so well. But there was also hope and the greatest volume of co-operation this global community has ever seen. Love was stronger. Because it always is. 

2020 was the year when we suffered together, as one species, for the first time in our generation. The “togetherness” hit home for all of us. It has become our mantra: “We are together in this.” And even if we could not hold each other’s hands physically for a while, we repeated this mantra over and over:

“We are together in this. I’m here for you.” 

2020 was the year when we learned just how connected we are. 

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Relephant:

Elephant’s Continually-updating Coronavirus Diary. ~ Waylon
How to Enjoy Life Amidst the Coronavirus Fear: Your Go-To Guide from Books to Podcasts & Wellness Practices.
What the Coronavirus is Teaching Me: 5 Lessons from Uncertain Times.
The Artist’s Stay-at-Home & Stay Sane Guide.
10 Simple Ways to Boost your Immunity without Leaving the House.

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