2021

Am I looking ahead to 2021? I have to think about that. I will say this – the pandemic caught a lot of us by surprise. Many of us have not known any challenges on such a scale that schools and shops all over the country would just have no choice but to shut down for months – gyms, clubs, pubs, seeing the Aunties – all came to a close.

But looking ahead to 2021, I think we might be a bit more prepared. There is a lot still ahead. I don’t think it’s all going to go smoothly, but at least we are more prepared for that. We have got used to having to change our plans because the rules keep changing. Most of us have figured out Zoom now.

I think we’ve all worked out what we cannot do in a pandemic or any other crisis – we can’t turn into couch potatoes. We can’t sit on the front door step and cry into Instagram because we are having a meltdown. We can’t let the younger brother go to some rave he’s been invited to in Essex. We can’t let the Aunties keep inviting the grandkids over for jollof or bun cake.

Some weird err – stuff – happened last year. People were weird man. One thing that I learnt during 2020 is that I have influence. The little brother listens to me. The Aunties listen to me. I can make a difference. I don’t think I appreciated that so much before this year. I have a voice and I can use it for good.

As well as having a voice, I also have a blog now. I can use that to make a difference. It can be whatever I want it to be. But that is a responsibility. I want it to be something good.

Life’s challenging enough – so in 2021, I want to contribute more.

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