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My daughter, Jillian, will graduate from high school in a week. We’ll be “sort-of” empty nesters then. She’ll head to Quinnipiac in the fall with the ultimate goal of being a dentist.
This is such a bittersweet time of year. These young people are full of so much hope and optimism, but also, being a kid these days isn’t easy, so there’s plenty of heartache and stress.
Frankly, as I look around, I see similar juxtapositions everywhere. Wins and struggles; joy and loss. That’s the way it always is, but what determines our ultimate success is our resilience through the hard times.
We’ve been talking about the end of the pandemic for a long time now. At what point will it truly be over and when will be able to say we are truly recovered? The answer is, we’ll never be the same. We’ll never be in the same place we were in February 2020. We are on a different plane, with a new trajectory and shifted priorities.
I see this reality very clearly in my work for Vermont’s non-profit hospitals. And I see it very clearly in the aspirations and experiences of our children, who have endured a lot in their young lives.
The pandemic itself may be squarely in the rearview mirror, thankfully. But the question of where we go from here is right in front of us. It is a completely unanswered question.
Our institutions—whether they be hospitals, schools, fire departments or small non-profits—are struggling. They are financially strained; they have workforce constraints; and the demand and complexity of demand has never been greater. Pressure is high, energy is depleted, and services are stretched thin. The toll on people— both those who need services and those who provide them— is significant and requires a level of vigilance and resilience most of us have never experienced‚—certainly not for this sustained a period of time. No one entity will survive if it goes it alone. We are all linked. We need to work together to build back toward greater stability in our communities. That means strong services across the board.
Vermont is the kind of place, though, where you can see and feel the impact of your contributions‚—whether work or volunteer. That’s why it’s so important to keep moving our state forward, lifting each other up, even when it feels impossible and we are tired.
I look to my daughter and her classmates for a boost of hope and inspiration to always find the energy to keep persevering.
Hope you have a great week.
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