It’s Jewish new year today – a time when we reflect on the year that’s gone past and look ahead to the one to come. And what a year it has been!
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A year of lockdown and working from home. A year with no (or very few) in-person school
visits, and closed bookshops. A year of Zooming into classrooms.
A year starved of human contact, a year of worry and strain
and fear.
A year in which the importance and value of the natural
world became ever more obvious. A year to reflect on climate change and how we can change and do better for our planet.
A year when our pets became essential mental health workers.
A year of Zoom and Teams and strained connections. A year of working with colleagues I'd not even met.
A year of gratitude for the work of scientists and doctors and nurses. A year
of vaccinations. A year of waiting and relief.
A year - alas -
of conspiracy theories and fear-mongering, of panic and ignorance.
A year of inequality and unfairness, but also a year of
charity and community.
A year in which writing was difficult. A year in which reading was essential. A year of box sets and bingeing TV.
A year to reconsider priorities and ask questions about the state of publishing
and the power structures within it. A year to listen to minority voices.
A year in which I spoke up about racism that affects me and
mine. A year in which I faced my fears, and magnified the voices of those who
survived the Shoah (the Holocaust). A year in which Jewish kids in schools suffered antisemitism from their peers - and were handed my book to help them through it. A year of sorrow, and pride, and carrying on regardless.
A year in which human contact - meeting friends for a coffee – was sweet and
precious and full of joy
A year in which I was very grateful not to be
home-schooling.
A year to remember. A year to move on from.
A year out from normal life. A year
in our houses.
A year like no other. What will next year bring?
( At Jewish New year we dip apple in honey for a sweet and healthy new year. The traditional food is honey cake, and you can find recipes galore here. Keren David's latest book is What We're Scared Of, published by Scholastic)
2 comments:
A very happy new year to you too. This last year and a half have been so eventful, all what you wrote is so true.
Happy New Year, Keren. What a past year, indeed. I hope an ease with writing (of sorts, at least)returns.
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