While not much has changed on the pandemic front; Toronto is still in lockdown, winter has set in and we are looking at the two coldest months of the year to get through. Still, we’ve changed – certainly 2020 has changed us as individuals – in more ways than in previous years, and collectively. The human race came in to 2020 with no idea what the future held. We are coming into 2021 with our eyes wide open and maybe our hearts a bit more open as well. And our kitchens – well, have they ever seen so much action?
We’ve all had to do some soul searching in 2020 – to consider things we haven’t pondered deeply before, to really look at things we’ve been avoiding. Things like careers, relationships, cooking three meals a day, childcare, the unfair distribution of home labour along gender lines, and the very real effects of loneliness.
We’ve come face to face with shocking disparities in wealth, we’ve seen common sense become politicized to the detriment of thousands. And we’ve stepped it up in our home kitchens like never before. We’ve learned some things about ourselves – whether this manifests as a career move, a new friendship, getting educated about anti-racism, learning new cooking techniques, or some boundary setting with family – things are going to be different this year.
We know that the coming months are going to be hard, if only because it feels like we’re so close to the finish line. This is exciting though. Change is good, it helps us to grow and it keeps life from becoming boring. 2020 has been anything but boring, while being mind numbingly so at the same time. Our wish for 2021 is that the changes we’ve been living with begin to sort themselves out and a new normal descends.
All the best to our staff and customers. We got through 2020 together, we can do anything!