2020: Murder, Mayhem and Chaos

 The year 2020 started off normally like any other. At least, that's how it was for me. Within two months of the beginning of the year our world turned upside down.  

My nephew, who was only fifteen years old, was murdered.  Something so unthinkable for a child,  the pain and anguish his mother felt was hard to watch.  Oh, don't get me wrong. I felt it too and keenly. We were not given the chance to mourn our loss and it was a great loss for our family. A child who had his whole future ahead of him was cut short over something that didn't amount to the value of a life.  It was complete non sense. (I meant to separate the word for emphasis)

Then within a matter of weeks the Coronavirus came in like a whirlwind. We were driven to seclude ourselves in our homes like a cave, the unbearable seclusion we were forced to endure for months on end.  "Don't go near anyone, wash your hands, wear your masks and stay home" was constantly being broadcast on the news like a scene from a Dystopian movie. The streets were bare, shops closed up, we could no longer eat out, visit the library or go to theaters and it felt like the world shut down. People stripped the store shelves bare of nearly everything leaving unwanted items as if they were crumbs for the birds. I don't know about you, but I felt like I was living in a bad horror movie. But you know what it was like, because you lived it too, and still we have no relief from this hell. 

The political freak show didn't help matters either that we experienced in the later part of the year.  Accusations of voter fraud, inciting a riot, a second impeachment and political division compounded an already stressful situation. 

I would not have wished this year to ever be repeated, nor the incidents contained therein. I want to go some place where the Coronavirus word is not spoken ever again. Socializing is normal and accepted. One can stand close to another and even touch without fear. I can face the world bare faced and not be shamed if I do so. A vaccine is not the cure for everything that blows in the wind. Next year, it will bring something different that we must contend with. Fear is not a banner to be displayed over our heads and we should think about things on our own whether we are being told truth or not.  Just think about it.