Renée Schafer Horton: Pinpricks of light in 2021

I rather obsessively save and re-save voicemail messages from people I love. I began this after losing the last message my sister left shortly before her unexpected death in 2020.

I’d give anything to hear her voice again, so now I routinely check for the robot woman telling me something is scheduled for deletion, so I can re-save messages I never want to lose.

That’s what I was doing the other day when my husband’s message from February – just 11 months ago – reminded me how phenomenal 2021 was.

“Hey, honey,” Robin said, “Finished my shift and I’m headed to drop off the tax stuff. Just wanted you to know what’s going on. Love you.”

This might seem mundane, unless you realize that the shift he referred to was a COVID-vaccination clinic at Tucson Medical Center. He was one of hundreds of volunteers supporting the clinics.

He worked six-hour shifts in the beginning, and everyone, it seemed, wanted a vaccination. The appointment lines were long and people who didn’t yet qualify would walk off the street begging for any extra doses.

Of course, that changed by his last shift in June, when vaccine hesitancy (and COVID denial) had set in, but his message reminded me of how remarkable 2021 actually was.

Yes, we’ve felt like we were in the Dark Ages, full of ignorance, blind loyalty to the Big Lie and violence. But thanks to some amazing scientists (and a handful of Republicans standing up for truth), light broke through in 2021 and will continue to illuminate 2022.

Just look around. Schools, churches and businesses are open. People are eating inside restaurants, flying on planes, heading back into offices, and complaining about winter visitors – many who stayed away last year – clogging up our roads.

There’ve been weddings, funerals, baptisms and quinceañeras. Heck, I did a Christmas pageant with a gaggle of little ones, and the best part was overhearing angels and Magi argue about their arms being “so strong I didn’t even feel my shot.”

In other words, despite what the don’t-tread-on-me crowd likes to crow, the majority of the country — and certainly here in Pima County — started getting back to life as usual in 2021, thanks to vaccines, mitigation efforts and advancing treatments.

That’s something to celebrate, even if we’re sometimes asked to wear a mask while doing our happy dance.

Outside the pandemic, there were other pinpricks of light. Here are five.

1. Greenland’s government, the Naalakkersuisut, decided it would no longer grant new licenses for oil and gas exploration, despite the country having tons of undiscovered oil deposits. They chose saving the planet (and their melting country) over profits. A million high-fives to them!

2. The Empire State Realty Trust announced that its buildings, including the Empire State Building, went completely wind-powered in 2021. According to the Washington Post, this means the 13 buildings will avoid spitting out about 450 million pounds of carbon dioxide. Who knew operating buildings is one of the largest sources of CO2 emissions? Props to them!

3. Krystyna Paszko, a high school student in Poland, was concerned about the increase in domestic violence during the pandemic. So, she set up a fake online makeup shop that allows domestic violence victims to appear to be shopping when they’re actually requesting law enforcement to come to their home. How cool is that?

4. Tennessean Jimmy Finch drove his smoker to Kentucky following the December tornadoes that destroyed the city of Mayfield. He wasn’t a politician or a non-profit. He was just a man who could cook and knew, as he told The Washington Post, that “not everybody has money.” He fed people for free out his pickup truck. The next time there is a disaster within a day’s drive, I plan to do the same. We have a truck, we have a smoker and my man makes a mean brisket.

5. Shreya Joshi, a high school student from Illinois was worried about the country’s polarization. Instead of whining about it, she started Project TEAL, a “student-led movement to revitalize democracy.” They do this by focusing on civics education and teaching people how to have civil political conversations. There are chapters in seven states and if you want a dose of hope, visit projectteal.org and support the cause. Shreya for president!

There are dozens more phenomenal things from 2021. Yes, we all want more in 2022 (bring back in-person storytime, Pima County Libraries!), and I’ll fight for that later. But today, let’s just rejoice that, despite setbacks in 2021, we mostly moved forward in progress. Look for the light; it’s there. And if you can’t see it, commit to being it in 2022. Happy New Year!