My Post-Pandemic Letter to You

(No it’s not over yet but let’s pretend just for a minute…)

I wanted to write to let you know how much you meant to me during the pandemic of 2020–2021.

Remember the initial months? Vacations/reunions/trips/games/classes were cancelled, there were curfews. Schools and gyms closed, we all worked and cooked at home. Everything fun was cancelled. We could not be social, there was nowhere to go, no relief. We were wiping down groceries, hunkering down in panic and confusion.

After a few months we reinvented, stopped denying, got creative. We texted and called, tried online meetings, facetime family holidays, and socially distanced walks. We were stunned and on hold, waiting for it all to go away. At best, we were finding bits of relief here and there.

After nearly a year, we had become hardier, and heartier. We had adapted and we needed each other. We did not stop reaching out. Love, friendship and kindness found new ways. We built new friendships and patterns, we expected less and appreciated more, we accepted uncertainty, we stopped complaining and laughed when things went awry. We started new projects, we led simpler lives, we enjoyed simply sitting in the sun. We didn’t need to spend money, look good, or plan in advance. It was ok if plans got cancelled, if we had to scrap everything and start over. We were forgiving, messy and happy and silly and crazy.

There were so many sentimental, hilarious, life-changing, touching, peaceful, lovely, and precious moments. I got to know many of you more personally during the pandemic than I might have if we hadn’t found ways to endure it together.

Here are some of the most touching moments I remember from the pandemic:

  • How we reached out to everyone and everybody on the holidays.

We were so honest, funny, real, messy, imperfect, heartfelt and human. All of us became a little bit more transparent, more open. We needed each other and reached out in different ways than before. So many times we laughed even harder and loved even more than before the pandemic. Some of our bonds became stronger. We grieved and became resilient together.

I’ve made a promise to myself: when I tell the story of the pandemic to our children and grandchildren, I will make sure to include not only the feelings of fear and our loneliness but also the stories of love, laughter, relief, how we got closer and leaned on each other, how we kept reaching out, how we made sure others were taken care of, how we let others into our lives more and lean on each other more, how we expressed our feelings more openly and became a little more vulnerable, how we laughed harder at the hilarious things, and supported and loved each other more than we ever had before.

I felt deeply moved and grateful for you for the moments we shared during the pandemic. It was a special time to be alive and we will be forever changed.

Thank you for everything.

Holly

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Website designer and developer, bookworm, yoga and fitness instructor.

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Holly Halvorson

Website designer and developer, bookworm, yoga and fitness instructor.