As a follow-up of my previous posts, I continue to revisit my archives and finding photos I've shot on film for the last 5 years or so. 
The year was 2020. A lot of things happened, being the COVID-19 pandemic the most relevant of all. Starting in November 2019, what many of us thought it was going to be a seasonal phenomenon and so distant for many of us, this pandemic changed the shape of our world and our lives, forever. It shone a light on humanity itself and what it's capable of: kindness, greed, selflessness, hate. The uncertainty and unknown let the door open for misinformation and selfishness, but it also reminded us that we could be able the get through this, together.
We were genuinely scared. For those who have relatives outside US, every day was a constant reminder that the "privileges" of living in a very well developed country could potentially put you on a fast lane when a vaccine or any other efficient treatment for COVID were available. We were scared of how badly reported the pandemic was in our home country, knowing once again that things were lot worse than how media and news depicted them. Every phone/video call with our relatives felt like a wellness check. "Are you guys taking care of yourselves?" "Are you using masks when you go outside?" "Please stay safe". When someone close had any COVID-like symptoms, fear was certain. Schools closed. Grocery stores were empty and with limited stock. But you're all familiar with that.
It was a year of first times for my family as well, and despite there were so few, they felt like joy. With all chaos and despair due to the pandemic, every small moment felt so big and relevant. Despite we were privileged and lucky in so many ways, we felt it wasn't necessarily a good thing most days, especially for all the things we couldn't control. We tried to at least recover some sense of normalcy and carry on during those days we felt the weight of the world on our shoulders. Not a new feeling for us though.
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