We can officially look beyond 2020 next week, and there are a few reasons for optimism to start 2021.
It’s customary to start a new year with hope and cheer for what lies ahead. Perhaps no year will start with higher expectations than 2021 because this year was one of unprecedented struggle and angst for a broad spectrum of the country.
With a glass half full mindset appropriate for the start of a new year, here are several reasons to have optimism as we look forward to putting 2020 behind us.
•A true medical marvel has taken place over the last eight months as the best and brightest in the pharmaceutical and science world have created two vaccines with historic efficiency. Though it will be months before the general public gets vaccinated, there are plans in place to distribute the vaccines in swift fashion once production occurs. This will be an enormous step toward a return to normal society.
•There will be at least two major federal relief packages passed in the near future. The details of the current $900 billion plan are being ironed out with each citizen expected to get anywhere from $600 to $2,000 in stimulus funds in the near future. Once the administration change occurs, another round of aid will surely follow.
•A second wave of Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funding will take place in the near future, rescuing many businesses from certain doom and keeping workers employed. There are realistic hopes many previous PPP loans will become grants, erasing a major worry for small business owners.
•The local real estate market remains hot with listings turning into sales in brisk fashion. A strong real estate market is a major economic influencer in this area.
•While the short-term effects of isolation from their school community are serious, we firmly believe children, adolescents and teens will be served well over time by what has occurred to them. These young minds now understand the meaning of resiliency and possess gratitude for their many blessings once believed to be a given.
•Finally, having faith means retaining optimism. It was a year of challenges for everyone in 2020 when homeschooling overwhelmed families, businesses suffered and restrictions on all aspects of life were commonplace. One thing we certainly understand well is 2021 will be better than 2020, which was dominated by a pandemic for the last nine months, intense race relations over the summer and a divisive presidential election this fall.
