A year ago this week, I was in Alabama with a group on a service-learning trip. We were there to help repair homes that had been damaged by a tornado over a year before, and to learn from local people and sites about the Civil Rights struggle. We worked on homes and explored history during the day, then talked about our experiences together each evening. From Tuskegee, a small town in rural Alabama with a rich history in civil rights, we kept an eye on the news about the new virus spreading across the world and into our country. On Wednesday, we visited various sites in Montgomery. As we took in the poignant and powerful National Memorial for Peace and Justice that remembers and honors people who were lynched across the South and the whole nation, we received text messages from the university announcing that Penn State would move instruction online for 2 weeks, but eventually stayed remote for the remainder of the academic year.
It is hard to believe that it has been a year already, and yet it also feels like 10 years have passed since those early days of the pandemic. We have learned countless medical facts, listened to so many public health briefings, and watched the information unfold. We have poured over statistics, studies, and CDC Guidelines. We have adjusted our routines and our patterns to try and keep ourselves, our loved ones, and our communities safe. We have made masks, hand-sanitizer, and social distancing a regular part of our lives. We have learned how to live in relative isolation, with classes, meetings, entertainment, and social gatherings online.
There have been all kinds of loss, for everyone. Those whose family and social circle have been relatively untouched by the worst effects of the virus have still been impacted by missed opportunities and the sorrow that surrounds us all. We all have something or someone to grieve.
We have learned a great deal this past year. We’ve discovered how much change and uncertainty we can handle, and found ways to care for and support ourselves and each other in times of stress. We’ve learned that injustice in our systems has long led to marginalized populations bearing the brunt of crises like the pandemic. We’ve learned that our democracy is more fragile than we realized, and that our voices truly matter.
Through it all, God has been with us. The very God who is the source of life and light and love has been there every step of the way. God is here in our hardest moments, the times we find joy, when we face uncertainty and disappointment, in the wake of loss and death. God is with us, continuing to enfold us in a love that will never let us go.
In all that lies ahead, God will be with us still.
Peace to you in all that is to come,