Hope, Heartache, and How to Heal

On a new era, old problems, and where we go from here

I woke up yesterday morning without the unrelenting migraine that had been my constant companion more days than not since the middle of November. It’s probably not a coincidence. I puttered yesterday feeling a range of various emotions that I struggled to put names to. Yes, I felt hope. I felt lighter. I felt heavy. I felt heartbreak. Even as we celebrated the inauguration on Wednesday over 4,000 people died of Covid as this winter continues to rack up ever higher tolls showing just what an unchecked pandemic looks like. 

We approach the one-year anniversary of the last time I went somewhere normal (church on March 8, 2020). One year is starting to feel long even to this introvert, especially I see the toll it’s taking on my kids. One year when you’re only six feels like an eternity. They don’t yet know that this will eventually fade as their years grow longer and it won’t seem as long in hindsight as it did in the interminable middle, especially as there’s no clear end date in sight. 

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