Reflections on transformational year as well as growth, life, and hugs on the horizon

On March 15, 2020, my husband and I took a video call from our older girl (technically my stepdaughter, though I’ve considered her and her sister to be my daughters for 16 years). We thought she and her fiancé were calling to wish me luck because I was having surgery the following day. In fact, they were calling for a second reason, too—to let us know that, on October 28, 2020, she was expecting a baby! We were over the moon. We couldn’t wait to see them and give them hugs and congratulations in person a few weeks after my surgery. Like everything else in 2020, however, those hopes would soon be upended.

Rest of world rapidly joined me in isolation

On March 16, the surgery center called to ask if I wanted to postpone my surgery because of a virus that was going around. I’d seen the news about a new virus detected in China. It was expected to spread, and employers were beginning to prepare for it. But I thought it was just another seasonal flu. I was planning to self-isolate for a couple of weeks after my surgery anyhow, so I went forward with it. I woke up to find the country going into lockdown.

I was already in what I consider to be a privileged position of working remotely from home. In the following weeks and months, I watched as the rest of the world joined me in isolation. I watched as essential workers stepped up and medical workers broke down. I watched in terror as people gathered for holidays, events, rallies, and protests, knowing a new surge of COVID-19 cases could easily follow.