This week I wanted to share a letter I wrote to 2020. My sister launched her “Dear 2020" project through her company, CAYA, as a way for people to reflect on the year and unite in the wide range of emotions that we all experienced. CAYA which stands for Come As You Are (we both love our acronyms), is on a mission to inspire humans to become more present, aware, thoughtful and kind to themselves and one another. Writing can be very therapeutic and I highly recommend you taking some time to write about this year if you haven’t already. You can go here to see the full collection of “Dear 2020" letters, or submit one yourself.

Dear 2020,

I’ve got a few things to say. You’re far from my favorite of my 39 years in existence.  While I have the urge to say “F-you”, I’ll stop short of that because I have to appreciate that any year above ground is a good one. I’ve endured your punches, watched you divide our country, and created more chaos than I thought possible. I would say you’ve been a dumpster fire, but that analogy doesn’t even do you justice because under your watch there have actually been fires that have burned massive parts of our country.

While I haven’t liked you, I respect the silver linings that have come with all that you have brought.  As Winston Churchill said, “Never let a good crisis go to waste.”  It took me a while to get there, but I finally got to the point where I said; “challenge accepted.”  Pain and discomfort can be a catalyst for change and growth and if we fail to learn from the most difficult and challenging things in our life, then we forgo the opportunity to become stronger. 

You’ve taken me on a journey this year. A journey that brought a tremendous amount of stress, feeling like the weight of the world was on my shoulders, feeling like I needed to take care of my team, feeling a sense of desperation, to finally accepting that the best views come after the hardest climbs.  The climb is not over yet, but I trust that once I get over the monumental challenge you’ve posed, It’s going to be glorious!

2020, you’ve shown me how to fight back, how to decide what’s worth fighting for and how to be more patient. You’ve given me more appreciation for things big and small - things that I previously took for granted.  You’ve given me space to get clear on what I want to accomplish.  You’ve challenged assumptions and invited me to think differently.  You’ve tested my will and forced me to be more resourceful.  You’ve brought more “breakfast meetings” with my kids and creative date nights with my wife.  Some of my relationships have grown apart, but others are stronger than ever. 

While you’ve been pretty miserable, I’ll take away the satisfaction of persevering and making it through without losing my mind (although it’s been close at times.)  You’ve left me battered and bruised, exhausted and frustrated, bitter and angry.  But you’ve also left me with a renewed sense of confidence and optimism that I am capable of much more than I thought possible.  I will carry this with me for the rest of my life and continue to ride the ride that makes me proud as I try to be the best I can be for myself and the people in my life.

With gratitude,

Anthony Lambatos