Before Covid, the holidays brought me renewed hope. While I refused to decorate until my Thanksgiving meal was long digested, the hope for a new year arrived right around now. After 2020 stole that from so many, I feel it again this year. Sort of.
Holiday Covid debate
2021 brings honest debates amongst intelligent minds about whether and how we should be changing our pandemic protocols, concerns about human white-nose syndrome, and frustration that we are not waking up quickly enough. Yet, can we all not agree there is more reason to be optimistic than 12 months ago? Case in point: for those celebrating the Christian holiday, many of our children will be vaccinated by then (a feat that appeared impossible last month). Huzzah to that!
It seems we are like so many animals disembarking Noah’s cruise. Few sprinted off the ark with a firm destination in mind, I imagine. Maybe the cheetahs did, but I am sure there was a cabal of marsupials rolling their eyes as the cats ran. For the rest, I envision paws and hooves stepping off with trepidation. They were unsure of this new land – it is the one they left? Somewhere different? Something in between? Despite the uncertainty, they knew staying on the ark was not an option.
Stay Safely Connected this Holiday Season
So too should we step away from shutdowns, quarantines, fist bumps, and air hugs with a cautious foot? Yet, step we must at some point. What better reason than bringing your smile to a fellow congregant during this time of rejoicing? I hope we can see one another as much as is safe and comfortable for each of us in these coming weeks.
Alex Sasken – President of the Board of Trustees