Dear 2020,

Though you’ve been horrific since the start, obliterating umpteen hopes and dreams of innumerable people throughout the world. Nonetheless, would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for being “The Best Teacher” till date. As they say, “Experience is the best teacher, and the worst experiences teach the best lessons”.

You taught us to appreciate, respect and cherish even the minuscule things in life, which often go unnoticed because we’ve been taking them for granted since times immemorial. You’ve taught us the value of community and being around people.

Never did we realize or even foresee in our wildest nightmare, that life can ever come to a standstill.

The little outings that enabled us to refill our passion for life and to recharge ourselves for the ensuing challenges were never appreciated, it was taken for granted. The unshackled, free and unmasked air that we used to breathe in was never given its due and was taken for granted.

Locked-down at home, have made us realize how precious and worth cherishing is our lives.

Being a mother, I was disheartened to see the kids, locked at home sans their friends. As a child, we always looked forward to meeting friends and having a gala time with them. That’s what childhood meant to us. Alas, you seized even those unadulterated moments of exuberance even from those naïve cute little creatures.

You wreaked havoc even in terms of weather and climatic changes. We’re all exhausted from living in the constant threat of hurricanes, tornados, and floods. Wildfires have destroyed too many of our homes and decimated wildlife populations.

Despite the so-called “statistics,” too many of us can’t find work or are not making enough to meet our basic needs. The migrant workers and the daily wage earners being the worst affected of all. Most of them, were even forced to shed their mortal garb.

Despite you being so ruthless, I owe you a lot.

• You’ve made me stronger and more prudent to appreciate life and a beating heart.
• You’ve instilled in me, to be grateful for the trivial and simple joys of life which often go unnoticed.
• You’ve made me realize, how big a blessing it is, to be able to see and appreciate a new day, in these dark times.
• You’ve made me realize, that survival is indeed possible with bare minimal necessities.
• Lastly, and most importantly you’ve made me pause and ponder about my life, my commitments, my priorities, my goals while nurturing my core values.

Thank you.

Regards,

A perpetual learner, who now values life!