This Moment Matters

Every day, I walk five miles. It's a habit that has been particularly important to me over the past year, as the pandemic drastically curtailed our ability to move freely. I spent much of 2020 on Long Island, where things felt less apocalyptic and sometimes, on those walks, I could almost pretend everything was normal. But all it took was the tug of the elastic behind my ears or the heat of my own breath to pull me back down to the tragic present. Then, my pace would grow sluggish under the weight of the world.

Lately, there’s been a skip in my step.

I'm filled with unbridled, excited hope. We have to hold onto our optimism, even after the year we've had, especially after the year we've had. Yes, there are problems, pressing problems, that are going to take a massive, collective effort to solve. But, with a new presidency, comes a chance for change. The president has begun reversing some of the previous administration’s policies, but much-needed reforms will be an uphill climb. So we must push forward. And yes, we must remember that a changing of the guard doesn’t—and never could—solve everything. Plus ça change, et cetera. That's going to take a lot more work from a lot more of us.