A Big 'Thank You' To All The Babies Born In 2020

Well, it felt like it might never happen, but at last, after the longest twelve months ever, 2020 is finally behind us. The COVID-19 pandemic isn’t over yet, but there is hope on the horizon. Vaccines are rolling out to people who need them most. It’s not unreasonable to think that by the end of 2021, we might be living in a world that more closely resembles our memory of normal.

That’s not to say that the work is done. 2020 taught us a lot of lessons. It’s painfully obvious we need to bump up science education at every level. Every single one of us needs to intentionally commit ourselves to anti-racism work, beginning with choosing not speak over BIPOC voices. Our commitment to the environment could use a renewed sense of urgency. There’s still so much work to do, and that will never change.

But it’s still a relief to see that shiny new year at the top of the calendar. Something about the fresh start of a brand-new calendar year brings a sense of hope and a strengthened resolve.

2020 was a year none of us will soon forget. It brought so much loss and hard things.

But 2020 wasn’t all bad. There was joy mixed in. For a lot of us that joy came in the form of a perfect ray of sunshine known as a 2020 baby.

Millions of brand-new souls came to life across the globe this year, and made the toughest year on record something to be thankful for.

Here’s to all the 2020 babies. Your existence was an infusion of beauty into one of the saddest, scariest years ever, and it’s time we thanked you.

Thank you, 2020 babies, for making home a sweeter place to be.

From stay-at-home orders to safer-at-home recommendations, we were all supposed to strive to be home as much as possible this year. We worked from home when we could, and went from work straight back home when we couldn’t. A lot of us ventured out only for work, groceries or short rides to break up the monotony. We spent a lot of time in our own four walls. We all made the best of it whenever we could, but those of us with 2020 babies were so lucky.

2020 babies, almost nobody else alive today has had a first year quite like yours. There is nothing sweeter than a happy baby, and your smiles and giggles reminded us that home is where the heart is more times that we can count.

Thank you for giving us milestones to look forward to during months that ran together.

2020 was the year that felt like it would never end. It delivered blow after blow. It took a lot of intentional focus to keep moving forward, and not get bogged down by the overall weirdness of the whole entire year. But those 2020 babies gave us a sweet way to pass the time.

You made your grand entrance. You learned to roll over, sit on your own, and smile when you saw us. Maybe you got a few little teeth, tried your first bites of food, or said your first word. Whatever you were doing, it was new and SO cute and fun, and it gave us a reason to cherish the moments instead of wishing them away.

Thank you for reminding us that we don’t need to follow a perfectly-laid plan to be happy.

New parents usually have a lot of ideas about how their baby’s first year will go, and almost nobody who had a baby this year got to follow their perfect plan to the letter. There was some disappointment there, and that’s okay! 2020 babies taught us that we didn’t need a perfect plan to make them happy. They were happy to be here figuring stuff out with us.

This year was kind of a trial run anyway. By the time they start making memories that will stick around, we will probably be back in a more typical world. 2020 babies will never remember this year, but we’ll never forget it.

We kept you home for practically the entire year, and we still managed to make beautiful memories. That’s all you, 2020 babies.

Thank you, 2020 babies, for hanging in there when we weren’t at our best.

2020 was weird and it didn’t bring out the best in everyone. Parents were tired. Sickness and loss was all around. There were huge fires and devastating tornados. Murders. Protests. An election that turned into a total circus. Millions of people struggled financially, wondering how they’d keep a roof over their heads.

2020 babies, you lived under some of those uncertain roofs. And even if you didn’t, your parents were almost certainly feeling the weight of some kind of tragedy this year. There were moments when we just didn’t have our best to give you. You hung in there with us anyway, rewarding us with snuggles, smiles and moments where we could have sworn the universe gave us the world’s most perfect baby. You never let us feel like we let you down.

Thank you for making 2020 a year that we can never wish away… because it brought us you.

While billions of people around the world were happy to see 2020 go, there were millions and millions of parents who had a little moment of wistfulness watching the clock strike midnight.

Because despite the grief and plague and sadness that 2020 brought the world, it also brought you, the 2020 babies. If we had a chance to skip 2020 and just stitch the end of 2019 to the beginning of 2021, we wouldn’t do it. Even if we had seen it coming, we would have agreed to live through 2020 just for the chance to hold you in our arms.