Each new year provides us an opportunity at a fresh start. However, that start can only be practical if we learn from the past and use it to make deliberate and meaningful changes for the future.

Indeed, 2020 was not a lost year, despite the fact that many of us want to forget it and the challenges, losses and pain it brought, which were made more excruciating by the novel coronavirus pandemic and its impact on our lives, movement, and comfort zone. The year brought with it many lessons. I take the view, that 2020 will propel us to strategically develop as a country and as individuals to embrace the future — once we find the lessons to implement the changes and make 2021 a success.

Recall: The only thing constant is change. Like many, I too suffered personal loss. My beloved grandmother died. So many other devastating issues emerged. For a while I was stunned, gutted even, and numbed by pain. In the midst of it I was reminded that the pain of the immediate is never more than the joy of your future. Yes, in the midst of pain there is hope for a brighter day. So, I take away a few lessons from 2020 into 2021, cliché though they may be:

• The most valuable entity in life is time. During the pandemic, for many, it seemed like time stood still. Yet, for others, especially those who lost loved ones, they wanted more time with them, time was the single most valuable entity we soon found. Use it wisely!

• Life must never be taken for granted; for where there is life there is hope.

• We can adapt and recover. Indeed, we can recover stronger. This was manifested as, though I was apprehensive, the simple thing that brought me joy was hearing my four-year-old son read his first simple sentence and spell words — despite online school in the midst of the pandemic. Joy also came from not taking anything for granted on a daily basis and working on projects that help to impact lives.

• We are stronger than we think and more courageous than we can imagine. Our strength really lies in how we carry our burdens. That said, we should always be willing to take a chance on life. Beauty is behind the fear. Human beings were built to be resilient. Indeed we were built to last. To withstand adversities and evolve.

On a national level, I share some perspectives that all of us, as Jamaicans who love our country and who want to secure this space for future generations, should contemplate.

As a communications practitioner, I must say communication is key. As a people, however, we must be attuned to the spoken and unspoken words and watch trends. Clarity is found in the totality of actions and words. My former boss in media always said words to the tune of: Balance is seen over time. This is true.

In 2021, the lessons that must be applied nationally so that we will bear fruit for the future.

But, it is also true that a country divided among itself cannot win. As a country we must pause and reflect on all our issues and apply the lessons learnt over the years.

Dialogue is important, but so too is action. As we seek to decisively address our crime problem we must implement strategies that work and reduce the bureaucracy that comes with it. While we have signed the National Consensus on Crime, let’s also implement Peace and Security Task Force – PAST (covers face), and make our high crime and violence rate a thing of the past.

While, as a country, we clamour for more to be done, it is clear — if you lower the level of noise in the market — that a crime plan exists. Ask yourselves, was it by luck that two billion dollars of drugs were seized by the police last month? That the Government has strategically invested high-tech patrol air and sea vessels and police cars, or that JamaicaEye cameras are now bearing fruit, and, importantly, that there is a reduction in non-violent confrontations by the police are visible signs some things are happening. The narrative of there being “no crime plan” is a fallacy when we see incremental results for a monster created over decades.

We must swiftly integrate all social intervention programmes, both private and public sector ones. While many corporate entities are intervening in our inner-city communities, education, and where real needs are, there must be greater and more targeted coordination to reach more people and create greater change.

As well, though not often considered a priority, we must implement quickly a programme geared towards building national identity and pride. Not NIDS, but who we are as Jamaicans — a people who are resilient and proud and full of potential waiting to be unleashed. There is need for a programme on civic pride and duty. And, remember, the youth are the future.

These are issues that have been raised in the past. And Government has worked to address some of them. In addition to the commissions on violence and education, I expect a transformation to start to take shape in the country. It is imperative that in 2021 we are united as we build back lives and livelihoods from COVID-19.

Patience with the process is critical. In fact, we need all hands on deck with targeted perseverance, which will lead to success and growth. In managing our expectations we must remember that you don’t reap the fruit from the tree you plant today. The seed you plant today, once the soil is watered and it is nurtured, the tree that emerges will bear fruit.

For we are a mighty people who are more than enough to conquer our battles, to triumph in the midst of storms that may come.

For 2021, as we individually and collectively seek to improve our lives and project Jamaica, we must make concrete plans and take strategic action, to change circumstances, and enhance our space through making the right connections. We must seize this moment and take charge of opportunities. We must embrace the value in ourself, to focus and execute, despite the noise.

May favour fall upon you and your household as you strategically work to improve you and the space you occupy. We are unstoppable!

Naomi Francis is a communications practitioner. Send comments to the Jamaica Observer or nemsfrancis@yahoo.com.