Lessons from 2020. 2+2=4. Plus we need hope and each other to survive.

2+2=4

One can pretend that reality does not exist but then a virus reminds us that it does.

2020 has been a tough year for all of us, and too tough for some. I feel lucky that I did not lose anybody to Covid19 and that a vaccine is around the corner, less than a year after we found out about the new virus.

Having read the books by Laurie Garrett, The Coming Plague, in 1994, and Betrayal of Trust, in 2001, I was not surprised when the pandemic came. I was, however, dismayed by the lack of awareness of many about what the virus was about to do to us as a society. Early on, I reminded my readers that this is 2020 and not 1918, and yet, many people in the USA behaved in such a way that it seemed they were incapable of learning and did even less to protect themselves and society than what was done in 1918.

I would like scientific advances to be enjoyed by all, but what to do when some people in my supermarket refuse to wear a mask or when some nihilists organize superspreaders events that will kill so many?

We can choose despair or hope, and I feel fortunate that I can choose hope. I feel for all the people that have lost their jobs, or their health or loved ones when other countries, using science as a tool, managed to keep the virus from destroying so much. I hope our country will be better once all of this misery is over.

Now that the vaccine is around the corner, I still hope that people will wear masks and keep doing what’s right so that we don’t lose hundreds of thousands more to the pandemic. And that they get the vaccine when they are fortunate to be offered it.   I am waiting in line patiently for my opportunity to get the vaccine, which will be the best gift I can get in 2021.

As a company, I think it is remarkable that in 2020, instead of just surviving, we managed to grow and introduce several great products. I used some of them, several times a day, I am grateful that they helped me heal and improved my life greatly when I needed it most.

I am full of hope for 2021, and that Skin Actives will continue to innovate and make products to help our customers.

Thank you all for helping Skin Actives be the great company that we are, by using science to improve life.