Thank goodness for 2021.
For most, if not all of us, 2020 was the longest year on record. And now it’s finally over. Things are starting to change.
I’m back in the editor’s chair, for one, and Adam Louis is heading over to warm the seat up in Hope.
The Agassiz Harrison Observer will now be published on Fridays instead of Thursdays. Priority people are getting vaccinated, and in March vaccinations will begin for the general public.
RELATED: B.C. plans for COVID-19 ‘mass vaccination’ by March
But despite all the changes, we need to remember to keep one thing the same: be kind.
Being kind is what got us through the first wave. It is what is keeping us going through the second.
It’s something I know the residents of Agassiz and Harrison are good at. I know, because I’ve seen it.
But unfortunately, kindness can be more challenging when we are worried or scared.
When we are looking online — particularly on Facebook, although also elsewhere on the web — it is easy to hide our concerns in bitter or cruel comments.
When we feel our normal lives are being threatened by new restrictions, it is easy to call people “sheep” or accuse them of conspiracy.
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We can do our best to keep these feelings and fears away by remembering that we are in this together. We are all fighting the same battle.
Unfortunately, that battle means sometimes ways we try to be kind can also be challenging. We’re used to hugs and handshakes — what can we do now?
Now, kindness means keeping your mask on when you’re in a public, indoor space. Someone might have an at-risk family member at home and thank you for it.
Kindness means phoning a friend rather than visiting their house. You may be an asymptomatic carrier for COVID-19 and have saved them from the virus.
I have great hope that we will be able to continue being kind this year.
It has happened before: the “sugar fairy” of 2020 who dropped off an anonymous baking miracle to a local resident. And it’s happening now.
RELATED: Sugar Fairy sweetens someone’s day
Just look in the pages of this newspaper (or look through the e-edition if you are reading online). Kindness is repairing Harrison Mills Community Hall, and kindness is bringing a basket of love to a New Year’s baby and their family.
It’s stories like these that give me great hope for the coming year ahead.
I can’t wait to cover more of them.
Editor’s note: in order to cover the amazing things you readers do, I need to hear about it. Please send along any and all story tips by emailing grace.kennedy@ahobserver.com or calling 604-796-4302.
Do you have something to add to this story, or something else we should report on? Email:news@ahobserver.com
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