I recently released a music video for a new song called “When the World Slowed Down.” The song and video are my attempt to create something beautiful and redemptive about a year filled with loss and hardship.
At the start of this pandemic, which some call The Great Quiet, with much of our normal activity shut down and many of us at home, familiar noises disappeared—traffic, crowded streets and busy restaurants. And in the stillness, we heard and saw things we hadn’t before. Birdsong in New York City. Ducks quacking on the Seine River in Paris. Empty freeways and blue skies in Los Angeles.
It made me wonder: What else has been calling out to us in the noise that we couldn’t hear until now? What else have our lives been showing us that we’ve finally paused long enough to pay attention to?
I don’t want to minimize the staggering losses we’ve experienced. More than 300,000 deaths in the US alone this year are attributed to the pandemic. And other losses we’re still dealing with: income, time with friends and family, freedom to go out, travel.
But loss sometimes brings unexpected wisdom, a renewed appreciation for the things that can never be taken from us: our shared humanity. Family. Gratitude. And our hope. I needed reminding that I can’t control every aspect of my life (like a global pandemic!) but I do have the ability to slow down, take stock of what really matters and show love to the people in my life.
I can’t begin to make sense of 2020, but I want to remember more than just what it took from us. I want to remember the unexpected gifts it gave us.
