Dedicated to 2020.
Give it a listen while you read!
For last year’s words belong to last year’s language
And next year’s words await another voice.
And to make an end is to make a beginning.
(Little Gidding)
― T.S. Eliot
Dear 2020,
Just wow. To say you swept us off our feet is definitely, an understatement. Not only did you do that, but you ensured that we remained suspended in space, lost in time. Did you enjoy being feared, hated and respected all at once? Are you having a good laugh over the naivete of humans, as they bid you farewell with a joyful heart, unaware of how you were probably, merely a commercial for 2021?
Despite you being just one of your kind, it feels like it has been years since mankind was brought down to its knees by a microscopic being, while you were, no doubt, revelling in what it meant for you. I don’t blame you, of course. You just happened to come around when the virus came around. And now you, like all of us, have been afflicted with it.
I once read that a lot of what we place so much importance on, are mere illusions, ideas and imaginary entities that man has assumed/considered to be real. By that realisation, you don’t really exist. You’re another product of man’s fecundity
(yes, the same man that is now living wary of a tiny being) to understand time and life better. But because you exist in our perceptions and imaginations, you have been connected to the virus, ironically termed ‘Covid 19’.
A few centuries from now, History books will have pages after pages speaking of your wrath, “2020-The year modern humans lost their way” or even further in time “Want to time travel? Ensure no stops in 2020!!” I can already think of beautifully glorious titles for you. History lessons would begin in the most dramatic of fashions,
2020 – An Unforgettable Year for Mankind
Set against a backdrop of human loss and misery was a journey of discovery and realisation that many were just learning to undertake. It brought about a tremendous change in people’s lifestyles, perspectives and proved beneficial to the environment, with pollution rates decreasing drastically. Adoption of minimalistic living practices became the norm in view of the virus’ indefinite tenure. As death tolls rose in a staggering manner, people dwelled in a constant state of apprehension of what the future would bring…..
Of course, if worse things were to occur in the subsequent years, you’d be left alone, lost in the pages of time. Oh dear, I do make you sound quite cruel when you were a boon in many ways as well.
I don’t know whether it was a ruse conspired by higher powers like Gods, centuries and years to revive kindness and humility but whatever the case, you definitely catapulted as into a period, where humanity was brought back to life. We saw health workers putting their lives on the line for the greater good of the general public. Our self-sufficiency increased and many have realised the value of having a family and friends as we went and continue to go through these tough times. This pandemic has also shed light on our finite existence and has made many aware that life, after all, is just a dream, one that we could wake up from, any second.
Yes, I’d say you have achieved a mighty lot, in a mere 366 days. You forget that numerous people preached and spoke, and wrote and protested, warning their fellow sapiens of how our ridiculous ways of life would end ironically, if we continued to live in blatant disregard of the issues that needed to be addressed. But as usual, practising ignorance as a norm of life, we needed a microscopic being to slap some sense into our big brains.
As much as I hate admitting it, we needed this microscopic virus to help us realise that boundaries were man-made, as we saw it spread across the entire globe, in a matter of just a few months. The sudden onslaught of this tiny virus was indeed a moment of shattered pride and lost dignity for mankind as a whole.
You have three more days of your life after which you’ll have to give the mantle to 2021. We have no way of knowing what it will bring but if you could take Covid-19 with you, and return it to wherever it came from, the human race would be incredibly grateful. We may even make you sound more benevolent in the history books of the future.
But our united opposition against this virus shows us the true nature of human beings; we have never before given up in the face of a crisis and continue to persevere till our goals are met. Our history is littered with stories of courage and cowardice, wars and bloodshed, new beginnings and glorious endings, and yet, here we are. This alone is testimony to the fact that we will endure. We will eventually overcome this whether you like it or not. This is not a threat, it’s a mere promise, a statement of our goodwill.
Don’t get me wrong. We absolutely appreciate the realisation you’ve shoved down our beings, the beauty of life you’ve exhibited and the light you’ve shed on the extinguished but now flickering goodness every man possesses. We appreciate it more than you know and while our elephantine egos might prevent you from knowing this, we do owe you so much, for a lifetime of lessons you’ve etched onto us. But now, it really is time for you to leave and take it all back. We have learned our lessons and will no longer continue to ignore the pleas of mother nature or lose ourselves in ridiculous worlds of wealth and beauty.
Dear 2020, you are a prodigy of your kind. I speak for the life I have seen. In my mere 16 years of life, that is. You probably appear as a mere toddler to years like 536, 1345, 1520, 1914, 1918, 1939, 1942 etc. But like them, you too have left a mark on this world. You have created inexplicably deep and painful memories that not even time itself can erase.
For, as humans, we tend to chronicle everything that happens around. We’ll write about you, frame news reports that first announced the arrival of the virus and maybe even award a Nobel Prize to the people who come up with a vaccine. You’ll still be around, even if you are close to your physical end. Students and teachers will talk of the days they spoke into screens and were tethered to screens, day and night. Glorious tales of how toilet paper and masks were the most popular amenities will be passed from generation to generation.
You’ll always be around, suspended in time, as we have been. And we will never forget you. It’s time to rest now. Go in peace, your point has been made, you have created a formidable checkpoint in the fabric of history.
-An earthling
P.S Don’t forget to take your lovely calendar with you. I doubt we need any more mementoes. And I hoped you liked the song! You’ve inspired some beautiful songs and written pieces. I bet blockbuster movies are on the way!
And now we welcome the new year, full of things that have never been.
― Rainer Maria Rilke
There are just a few more days to go! 2020 was a hard-hitting year, to say the least. Here is to a hopefully better year! 🥂
Thank you so much for reading!
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