We have to be strong to meet the challenges of the new year.

For those who are classic rock fans, the title of this very old song by the British band Jethro Tull might best describe our 2020 and our attempts to climb out of the pandemic. Certainly 2020 was not easy and our attempts to curtail the pandemic were not easy as well. Even the solutions have not been easy.

We did get a strong stimulus bill out of Congress as an initial response to the crisis. But the second bill took excruciatingly long to negotiate.  And even after it passed, there were questions about whether the bill would be signed (it was) and whether the amount of the checks sent out should be increased (it was not).  The vaccine development process was very impressive, and we were all thrilled when the rollout began in December.

But it turns out that vaccinating millions and millions will not be so easy either, as we fell behind right off the bat. Let us hope the pace of vaccinations will pick up as we move along.  For now, we can say definitively that “nothing was easy” about 2020 and regaining our momentum in 2021 will not be easy either.  The employment report last week was just a reminder of how far we have to go. But we are confident we will get there. This country was not built on easy street.