Journey With Sam

I knew my 2020 would be a rough year. A majority of my cancer treatment was going to take place in 2020. I didn’t know how my body would react and knew my travel and social life would be limited. I hated all of that, but this was required to rid my body of cancer. I didn’t ask for it. I wasn’t looking forward to it, but it wasn’t an option to skip it if I wanted a better future for myself. I had to take it on and make the best of it. And it worked. My body is rid of cancer.

2020 for everyone else has been an incredibly rough year too. No one could have predicted the stuff that has happened and sadly most of it isn’t good. I can’t help but think, what if 2020 is the year that the world starts fighting some of its own cancers? What if 2020 is the year that we can’t skip because we will use it to make the world better?

I saw this posted a month or so ago and it really got me thinking. I love the message. I knew 2020 would be an important year for me, but maybe 2020 is critically important for the world.

What if 2020 is the year we finally seriously start to fight climate change? We saw the incredible results in March and April when countries when into shelter in place. We saw the Earth breathe again and we can make changes to keep it that way. We only get one Earth and we need to keep it healthy.

What if 2020 is the year we make strides towards racial justice? I have spent the last two months listening and learning how to be an ally, how to be anti-racist. Racism is alive and thriving in the US (and around the world). If you don’t believe this, listen to Trump’s last two speeches (July 3 and 4). We need to take a deep, honest look at our country, systemic racism, the police system, voter suppression, the prison system, and so much more. We have so much work to do. Black Lives Matter!

What if 2020 is the year that we realize our healthcare system is broken and start to fix it? I think we all knew our healthcare system was broken well before 2020. Affordable Care Act was a step in the right direction, but it needs fine tuning. A pandemic seems like a great time to really take a good look. I know I wouldn’t have been able to take up my cancer fight without insurance. Just this year alone, I have been charged over $300,000. Thankfully with insurance, I only had to reach my out of pocket (still not fun and a majority of Americans could not afford that). So many people have to fight with the decision of if it is worth it to get medical help, even if they need it, because it will leave them bankrupt. No one should have to choose getting the medical care they need or paying for rent and food. No one should see their medications jump in price so they can no longer afford it. No one should have to cross the border into Mexico to get health treatments because they can’t afford it here in the US. We need to do better!

What if 2020 is the year that people start to believe in science again? Somehow people have decided that if science doesn’t agree with their ideas, that science is wrong. Being an engineer and spending a lot of time working with different aspects of science and technology, I struggle with those who write off science. Yes, there are always crap studies, but if you find science that has been put through the scientific method, vetted, and repeatable, I like to trust the experts and their findings. Just look at the pandemic. The countries who worked with doctors and epidemiologists to come up with a strategy to combat COVID-19 have seen less cases and are on the right path. The US, Russia, and Brazil who deny the virus exists, ignore doctors and their own healthcare systems, and decided it will just disappear, are now fighting with increasing cases and struggling hospitals.

What if 2020 is the year we realize our booming economy wasn’t enough? Somehow our economy was the best ever in February, but just one month after shelter in place, it seemed like every company, regardless of size, needed a bailout and layoffs were wide spread. People are barely able to afford a month of expenses. If the majority of the country doesn’t have enough money to survive a month or two without a pay check, are we really that rich of a country?

What if 2020 is the year people start to respect and love one another regardless of race, age, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and any other differences? I wish I could say that a pandemic could lead to helping each other through hard times and respecting each other, but sadly we have seen the opposite. We need to step back and accept people’s differences and realize it makes us a better community. You don’t have to agree with them on everything, but you can respect them. You can respect their life and their choices. Love is Love!

What if 2020 is the year the world and the US finally take on the different growing cancers? Wouldn’t this be nice. Wouldn’t it be nice to learn from these difficult times. Wouldn’t it be nice for these challenges to bring out the good in the world. I agree with Leslie Dwight’s poem, maybe 2020 is the most important year of all. Let’s not waste it.