Dear You.

"2020 was one hell of a ride huh? But hey b*tch, you survived! *lovingly looks at butt in mirror, slaps it & smiles*

I know it's grim but the reality is alot of people didn't. After an earth shattering year from hell; tally, stock, and claim any wins you can. You deserve too after all you've been through.

You lost your dream job you fought like hell for, your stability crumbled around you, you feared for your life, and for the lives of everyone around you, you battled your mental health daily, you struggled with anxiety and panick attacks, you prayed and sought guidance, you cried for humanity and watched endless brutality and bloodshed on the news, you marched beside your neighbors, your accounts dwindled, business after business closed around you, friends and family are struggling, world-wide lockdowns persist, the curfews & mask enforcement, people dying. All of it crashing down around us all at once.

It felt like the world stopped spinning. And yet you were expected to remain calm and ignore feeling the collective tensions mount to the brink of war.

Yeah... yikes. That all just happened. 2020 was a psychological massacre on steroids.

Wether you side with extremist and conspiracy theorists, or hold the belief that the cumlative disastrous events of 2020 were mere happinstance; the results are the same. The unexpected reality of 2020 is that despite our differences, humanity was finally forced to acknowledge that we are all on this planet together. For better or worse. (earth is beginning to remind me of an unhealthy marriage). It is critical to our survival that we accept our actions affect eachother's ability to live in peace and harmony.

Which begs the question my darling, what values and principles are worth dying for, and what needs to be set aside in the name of peace?

It's January 2021. With the horizon still so unclear; survival is a win. But is that all we have evolved to? Basic survival? Are we not meant for more? Can we not applaud eachother's abundance and allow for true equality? Have we not evolved past the ego? These are questions I find myself asking my reflection these days. I wonder if I am the only one.

Are there any dreamers left? The kind that have expanded their consciousness beyond the superficial interpretations of others. Can we see beyond our ego and our programing? Can we see eachother?

2020 taught us another thing; that we are all mirrors of one another at different stages of the same souls journey. And so, don't we owe it to eachother to be kind? Nature teaches it's quiet truths. They are woven into the rhythms of humanity if you listen. What we see in others exists inside of us. When you hate it is really self hatred.

It feels like the "karmic call" of 2021 is for humanity to heal by facing our hidden and shameful atributes. I'll admit the choas and madness of 2020 brought me comfort in a way. We know from experience and logic that nothing broken can be built-back stronger until it is first deconstructed.

So I sit an ponder what it will take to get over the unrest of 2020 in America and the rest of the world. Can't we all agree that the purest gift we can offer one another is freedom?

I can't be the only dreamer left. Remind yourself every morning of 2021 that it's never to late to dream. Starting over is always scary. Anything worth doing always requires a generous level of courage. Have the faith to redefine who you want to be, and how you wish to show up in this world. Because why the-f*ck not? The world itself is redefining its definitions.

2020 taught us that nothing is promised, not even tomorrow. The good news is you have nothing left to lose my darling!

Hell, you may as well shoot for the stars. Might even land on the moon. F*ck around and find out. It might even be fun."

Have heart,

Your biggest cheerler: YOU

Letter by Bethany C.