My 2020 Letter To You

Dear Friend,

Auld Lang Syne. It’s always been my favorite holiday song. ‘Old long since’ or ‘for the sake of old times’ is how it can be translated. 365 days ago, we were all buzzing at the turn of the decade and now we’re all... well, full throttle out of this year.

For the next 72 hours, your Instagram feed will be inundated with New Year’s content. Fashion bloggers will be posting stay at home sweats, influencers will have ideas for your NYE plans, medical bloggers will be posting lessons learned and goals for 2021, fitness lovers will have their workouts blasting, friends will be posting highs and lows, the good, the bad, and everything in between. Surge. Quarantine. Social distancing. Equality. Mail in Ballot. Unprecedented. Wild Fires. Just a few of the theme words we’ve taken on this year. Lately, IG has overwhelmed me. So take what you want from the 1:1 squares & leave what doesn’t serve you. Reflect at your own speed, maybe don’t reflect at all.

A few months ago, I asked someone, “Will 2020 be in the textbooks my kids or grandkids read?” The person answered, “For sure.” And as pathetic as this year has been for so many of us, it’s been a pretty transformative one for just as many. Tenacity, perseverance, commitment, gratitude, perspective. After 364 days, we haven’t given up. Business owners. Relationships. Healthcare workers. Activists. Employees. Families. No one was exempt. No one too rich, too successful, too good for rules to not apply. We have all hung in there. You've proven stronger than you thought.

Life won’t be drastically different on Friday, January 1. So take the pressure off of yourself. Slow down, take a breathe. We have weathered the storm, and I like to think we’re out of the eye. Whoever is on the couch next to you tonight, tomorrow night, or any night, squeeze them tight. You are only as good as the company you keep.This year, you've learned what you need, what you want, how to react, and how to adapt - whether you recognize it or not. Eventually, we’ll look back on 2020 for old times sake, but in the mean time, always take a cup of kindness yet, for auld lang syne.

xx, Bridget

Originally posted December 30, 2020