A 12-Year-Old’s Letter to Her Post-Pandemic Self

“I thought 2020 would be the year I got everything I wanted. Now I know 2020 is the year I appreciate everything I have.”

Author and Mom Julia Cho gave her daughter Audrey an assignment after hearing this from her while on a walk. Audrey said to her Mom: “She would never forget this pandemic, and that she never wanted to take for granted having friends over, visiting extended family or hugging her grandparents again. She wondered, though, whether people would really live with new appreciation. Over time, would we all forget?”

Mom’s assignment for Audrey was to write down her feelings today as they related to her experience living through the pandemic. The letter that Audrey wrote to her future self demonstrates insight and gratitude that we should embrace and take with us beyond this Covid nightmare. Audrey’s words demonstrate a wisdom and maturity beyond her years. She eloquently expresses how much she now appreciates the things that she took for granted prior to the quarantine.

It’s the little things that when taken away from you reveal their true value. Most of the missing things centered round the loss of human connection. The high fives, the hugs, the family visits, seeing friends and more all shared a commonality – An emotional link to others. That was what she misses the most and my guess is that this may be true for many of you as well.

Camp’s mission this summer will be to remind everyone of the healing power found in community and to encourage everyone to fully engage in opportunities that camp offers to them. Our goal: To be reborn and comfortable living in a more connected world.

Audrey’s musings challenge us to live in the moment and to fully appreciate the impact human interaction has on our collective well- being. At Danbee everyone knows that what we have there is very special. It took a pandemic and loss of time together to ram that reality down our throats. Going forward, none of us will ever take camp for granted again. Sometimes our best life is right is right in front of us. We just need to stop and smell the roses and be grateful for what we have and what matters.

Here’s to: Embracing our new normal.
Here’s to: Learning to celebrate and value the importance of the little things in life.
And Finally: To finding joy and connection with family, friends, and strangers alike.

From strangers, to friends, to sisters. Means more now than ever before.

Audrey’s Letter (to her future self)

Dear Audrey,

You are much older now, and hopefully wiser, although sometimes that’s not the case. You have probably forgotten about me. I’m 12-year-old you struggling with anxiety, hating virtual learning, in this nightmarish pandemic … I could go on and on. Ring a bell?

Anyway, maybe time machines exist in the time where you are, but they don’t here, so I’m doing the next best thing: I’m writing you a letter that I hope you read every year on New Year’s Day, or New Year’s Eve. I’ve come from 2020 to remind you not to forget. I am sitting on my bed right now, tears still on my face from a fight with my mom (I love her more than anything or anyone, but we’ve spent too much time together), and aware of the light blue masks hanging on the hooks next to the door in my kitchen. In a way, it still feels like March, when this whole crazy thing started. I’m sick of it.

I am begging you to remember. I didn’t get to spend Thanksgiving with my beloved grandparents, when I’d been waiting so long to act normally with them and pod up. Now, it looks like I won’t be spending Christmas with them normally either. In America (where I live), the Coronavirus numbers are higher than they’ve ever been. I am hoping and am going to pray for a Christmas miracle, but I have my doubts because I hoped for an Easter miracle and that didn’t happen.

I am struggling and would do anything to get out of 2020 and this pandemic, to see my friends and family normally. You are able to do that. You have what I want so badly. So please, I urge you to enjoy your life, your friends, your family, your experiences.

Remember — everything is replaceable and unimportant, but people are the only true thing that matter in this modern-day world.

Love your life, and be filled with joy this year.

Sincerely,
You, age 12, Audrey in 2020, the Pandemic Year.