It’s been exactly a year since I’ve taken this photograph. I still remember thinking about taking it, not sure why. I had just woken up after a night out, in Amsterdam, laying on a couch surrounded by friends. Looking up, I looked at the window, and thought that I should take this photo. At that moment, I thought that this was just another photo, one of those random pics that I have filling up my phone. No one told me that that was going to be the last picture I would take abroad, at least for a very long while.

It’s been exactly a year since I’ve been on a plane, a year since I’ve stepped in another country, a year since I immersed myself in another life, a year since I drank and laughed with my Dutchie family. This photo has come to mean a great deal now. Everytime I look back at it, I can hear Bear’s Den playing in the background, hearing my friends talking in a language I do not understand, but feel somehow connected to, eating frikandel and just living the moment. No one could have told me that a random photo could come to mean so much.

This virus has taken a lot from all of us. For many people, it has taken the lives of their beloved, for others it has taken away their jobs and their livelihood. For all of us, it has taken away the assurance that everything will be alright. We are no longer the boss of our own life. We’re just living day by day praying that somehow we get through this unharmed, together with our family and friends.

But they say that hope is the last to die. Our time will come, when we will travel, where we will mingle, where we will sing at the top of our lungs in a massive crowd, where we will feel so alive like we’ve never felt before. Somehow, experiencing all of this post-Covid is going to feel so much better than before. The beer will taste sweeter, the hugs will be tighter, the soul will smile brighter. 

So from the bottom of my heart, I wish you hope and strength. Here’s to a much brighter future, one filled with hugs, music and vibing crowds. And take loads of random photos, ones that will remind you of the good days on rainy days. We will get through this!