Have you thanked your celebrators today?

Today, Minnesota opened up vaccine eligibility to everyone over the age of 16 which has everyone looking to the future and breathing a sigh of relief. It still might take some time as providers are encouraged to prioritize their patients and those who are most at risk, but the light at the end of the tunnel is getting closer and whispers of spring are hard to ignore. Getting back to normal feels like it might be just around the corner.

While the CDC says it’s not quite time to party yet, It is a time to celebrate in the ways we can more than ever. If for nothing else, for the celebrations we had to give up for the greater good.

Our clinic had just such a pause. At the first signs that this virus was more than just a common cold, the masks came up and all our events (and there were quite a few of them) got postponed indefinitely.

And they still haven’t happened.

A normally vibrant workplace became much less so. While everyone felt the malaise, no one felt it quite so strongly as our resident celebrator and medical assistant, Tracey. When she started at People’s Center over 9 years ago she found a clinic in need of something a bit special, and took it upon herself to make everything a little cheerier,

“I used to have big potlucks. Everyone would bring something to share and eat together” Tracey said, “now with COVID we just can’t do them anymore.” It wasn’t just the potlucks: birthday celebrations, breakroom events, cultural events, it was all cancelled. “It put people in a dark situation,” Tracy told us.

But no matter how bleak things felt, and how different things had become, Tracey knew that people needed hope to find their way through: they needed a taste of normal. So when everyone was out of the breakroom, their offices, or their stations, she would slip in, armed with that month’s decorations, and she’d get to work.

“March is St. Patrick’s day, April; think flowers, and May is Cinco de Mayo.” She said, “It’s hope, its the little things, a light at the end of the tunnel, When they see the decorations they say ‘Big Momma did you do that?’ and if I can get one person to cheer up from doing it, then it’s worth it.”

There’s a ripple effect, she told us, that happens when you see everything decorated. “You pass that happiness to your patients, to your doctor, to everyone. and it keeps going.” One study by Berkeley suggests that there’s truth to that. Celebrations like birthdays and holidays, they say, are big components of what glues people to their societies. Without the traditions, people can lose track of time, feel unappreciated or lonely, and reach out to their peers less. Sound familiar?

So what can we take away from Tracey’s story as we take another step towards the end of this pandemic?

“The biggest thing is to celebrate. It might be different, but you have to make it happen”

And she’s right. While we need to do it safely (and here’s some safe idea’s for get togethers for vaccine havers), these traditions are a part of our human history, and that history is marked by innovation and adaptation. We’ve faced time away from loved ones, fear on a global scale, and have overcome so many obstacles. Taking the time to send out cards, plan a bonfire, or decorate our homes can bring the hope we need to trudge on.

So as we get vaccinated remember to celebrate this victory, and always remember to thank those who’ve found ways to bring people together in little ways when we’re so far apart.