The month of December has found many of us unexpectedly. I recall wishing people well on social media and a guy responded saying he couldn’t believe the last month of the year was here. In fact, he said he is in a corner peeping before removing his whole body lest the month goes back where it came from, literally. 

Because we have had to deal with a global pandemic, life was not the same as it was last year or the past years. That is not to say we never had issues before, we did but not something of the magnitude of Covid-19; not something that causes planes to park and ships to stay on water with no country willing to allow them to dock. This story we will tell for many generations to come. 

And in all that has gone on throughout the year, there has been a silver lining; for some the pandemic has been a blessing in disguise. Think of the people and companies that offered digital services; it was a time when many people that had never purchased stuff online had to suddenly adapt. Telecommunication companies had departments that did not suffer, especially data and digital payment platforms, there was increased traffic there meaning increased revenues, though I am certain they spent quite a chunk of money off the budget to meet the sudden demand. 

There is a guy who lightly joked online that the virus must have been created by a woman because suddenly husbands were spending more time at home than away with the boys. For long, men had claimed they couldn’t watch football in the house because it is not fun, then suddenly even stadia could not be opened to host matches. 

I have a friend who runs a hospitality business, for them a holiday does not come easy. He has never seen a year like this that gave him abundant time and freedom to bond with his children. With no work going on and no money coming in he jumped on the lifetime opportunity to parent his children, and today, he says it is the greatest experience ever, he wishes the pandemic could pass and things go back to normal but will forever appreciate the opportunity to play with his children, bathe and feed them. 

Three years ago, John, a young man who works in the entertainment industry, left his home to go register a private company with hopes to promote local tourism, he never got to aggressively do this or build his company because he was still working for someone else. 

The pandemic hit the entertainment scene badly and as John was home pondering his next move after being told his company could no longer afford to keep him, he remembered the company he registered and started strategising, today as things ease up gradually, he has found himself more committed to his ‘baby’ and it is paying off in a way he never anticipated. When I had a chat with him he said no matter what has happened this year, it has also been the year that opened his eyes to great potential he did not know he had. 

The year is ending, I hope it opened you to the great potential you never knew existed.