2021 Wrap Up

We know it's a bit of a cliche tradition, but we wanted to take a moment to reflect and share our progress this year — after all, what are traditions for, if not to provide routine in unprecedented times?

Following months of work, Hindsight launched on January 1, 2021. As we combed through submissions, the ones that stood out were those that preserved the details of 2020: the preparation required for a simple trip to the grocery store, the aisles reduced to one-way traffic, the now-nonsensical ritual of wiping down produce and packages. Already the potency of these rituals has started to fade, but we commend the contributors who were able to capture how surreal these experiences felt in the moment.

Since we announced Hindsight one year ago, we've received hundreds of stories from people in 28 countries. Take a look at the full list below:

Hindsight Submissions by Country

Many contributors chose to write about their personal struggle with coronavirus or their country's response to rising caseloads; others opened our eyes to completely different events that transpired in 2020: Australian bushfires, the August 4th explosion in Beirut, and a 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck Turkey in October.

Still, in a year when people felt more isolated and polarized than ever before, I think you will find that the stories in our anthology highlight what united us in 2020. The curse of the pandemic is that it affects all of us; perhaps not at the same time and perhaps not equally, but everyone on earth is coping with the same disaster. Depending on your perspective, there may be a level of comfort in that. As 2020's breakout star Ted Lasso put it, "I promise you there is something worse out there than being sad, and that's being alone and being sad. Ain't no one in this room alone."

Hindsight Submissions Map