Sara Urquidez

I’m glad for everyone who is able to find passion projects and get things done during this time. I would expect this would be good for takeout, if you can’t get a table in the outdoor dining room or you aren’t comfortable with dining in person. (Tom bought another one after Christmas, and yes, we put it up after Christmas.) , it’s not until I sit down to write this list that I realize I’ve managed to carve out a little bit of time to do the things I love.

You do not get a pass because you could not hold your nose and vote for him, especially if you live in Texas or Missouri, and voted for those folks who decided to add gasoline to this fire as well. I tried to tell you that a million different ways that this president, his policies, and his administration were dangerous to folks without my privilege. I tried to give a human voice, face, and experience to cold and callous laws and policies that only served to frighten people into some sort of sick submission. The pathway forward is long, difficult, uncomfortable and requires a commitment to making a better world for everyone – not just those who occupy positions of privileges – and all of us must use our voices to fight for the value of democracy that we say we hold dear.

In spite of everything, I continued to try to do my best to bridge these divides, and in 2021, I will be trying to figure out how to recapture the lost seasons for the humans who were impacted the most, which started with the class of 2020 and have continued to affect the class of 2021. After a second amazing New Year’s Eve in Florence, we dubbed it our new tradition and decided to come home from Italy early. May also brought muted end-of-the-year celebrations, virtual graduations, and left us with a lot of emotional exhaustion at not being able to celebrate with the class of 2020. This decision did not come without an emotional toll, but after the year I’ve had, I feel like I just needed a little more time to be and to process all of the things from 2020.

Last year, as we waited to board our flight to Paris for Christmas, I noticed a speciality cocktail in the American Airlines lounge in Philadelphia. The Winter Chill cocktail was adorned with cranberries and rosemary and tasted like Christmas in a glass. Fast forward: an entire year of not traveling; an entire year of not flying; an entire year of thinking about the travel experiences I missed. but if you’re looking for a delicious drink to celebrate the holidays with, let me recommend the winter chill cocktail.