Release 2024

The last few years have truly been years to remember that are worth saying goodbye to. Our life changed in ways we could only have imagined in a Sci-Fi movie. It started in 2020 when we had to isolate ourselves from loved ones due to a deadly virus. Travel to foreign lands ceased as countries closed their borders. The death toll rose to numbers we could never have imagined. If before the virus happened and we were told this would become our reality, we might have laughed at the giver of the news. Certainly, we could never have believed it. 2024 will be remembered as the year when our country experienced division not seen since the civil war as politics turned friends into enemies.

Many of us found the time alone uncomfortable at first, but slowly we began to use this isolation as a time of reflection. What is truly important in our lives? With so many out of work and money scarce, we began to realize that material things weren't really that important. Relationships were maintained through electronic means, phone calls, zoom calls, messenger, and other technology that allowed us to keep in touch without actual touch. Virtual hugs replaced physical hugs and our sense of self and what really matters grew stronger. The environment got a break from pollution and nature saw a rebound in areas.

Now with a vaccine a reality, we have returned to physical hugs, group meetings, and travel. But let us hope that our new "reality" is more considerate of others and the environment and the world as a global community. Let us realize that what happens on one side of the planet also affects the entire planet. Let us become united as a world renewed with the hope for a better world.