It’s over. It’s finally over!
No, not the election. The uncertain and contentious atmosphere continues along with an almost guaranteed contesting of the final results. The killing and riots aren’t over either, meaning the police killing black citizens and the riots which follow. Unfortunately, those continue even though peaceful protesters were hoping their presence could make a difference for the better.
Unlike some people’s wishful thinking, the coronavirus, which we should now call COVID-19/20, is far from over as well. At least it hasn’t invaded the year 2021 yet. But it will.
Nothing is finally over this year… except hope. The hope that the year 2020 will end better than it started. There’s no hope for that now and we all know it.
That fact became clear to me two months ago over the Labor Day weekend. Derby Day was rescheduled because we hoped to have the COVID crisis well under control by then. Many were looking forward to seeing the big hats, mint juleps, and burgoo. Not this year. How sad.
Then the traditional fireworks were set off at a mystery location. No cheers from either side of the river. No boats tooting their horns. No backdrop of the stadiums or bridges. What a depressing start to September.
At least October ended with a sense of normalcy with Halloween celebrated as close to normal as possible for many of the trick or treaters (and the weather gods held off any rain). But what about all those Halloween parties that would have been planned for a perfect Saturday Halloween night complete with a blue and full moon and an extra hour of sleep the next day (with the end of daylight savings time). The perfectly “strange” Halloween of 2020. It couldn’t have happened in a more appropriate year.
For those parties that did occur – guess we’ll know in a couple of weeks what impact they had on the positive COVID case count. Could be another surge just around the corner? Is there any hope that won’t happen??
In the final months of 2020, I’m not even going to mention hope for the upcoming holiday seasons of Thanksgiving and Christmas. There’s no way they will be the same as other years. Many believe we can’t live without those celebrations. Others fear many will die because of them. Ugh!
What a dismal way to end the year – earlier arrival of darkness with each passing day, rising number of covid cases, and the potential for a double threatening winter virus season ahead. Yes, the flu is deadly too. We needed those missing winter holidays more this year than ever before.
So what’s next? Looking forward to a better 2021? Is there hope ahead?
Focusing on 2021 seems like the best option – the most optimistic one that I can think of. On January’s Inauguration day, we will officially recognize our president for the next four years, whoever that turns out to be even though the grumbles of the loser will continue for months.
Through the winter, maybe cooler heads will prevail on both sides of the killing and rioting factions. Maybe both sides will take a break from behaving so badly and decide there has to be a better way to live civilly and respectfully with each other for all concerned.
After we weather through a socially distanced and isolating winter, spring will be welcomed like we have never welcomed it before. Derby Day will return to the first Saturday in May whether a crowd can attend or not!
Finally and hopefully, sometime during the first half of the year, a COVID vaccine will be approved and rolled out by fall, so all or most are protected by next winter.
That’s what we have to look forward to in the year 2021. The world doesn’t get anywhere close to normal – just edges closer month by month in a slow climb up a steep slope. Hope, incremental steps and improvement in all facets of our lives will carry us through the upcoming year. Real hope for our complicated society which has to survive this “once in a century” calamity.
Realistic Hope!
Lynn James is a lifelong resident of Northern Kentucky and has lived in Boone, Kenton, and Campbell counties. She enjoys living and observing real life with real people.
