2020: A Photo Essay
Using original 600 Film by Polaroid
I’ve been capturing my life on polaroid film since December 2017.
The year 2020 was no exception. This photo essay captures the ups and downs of 2020, from life pre-pandemic and learning to grapple with our new reality, to making bold life decisions in light of the pandemic.
To me, this collection of photos is a poignant reminder of all that we have overcome. It reminds me of how hard it was to accept living through the coronavirus but choosing to persevere and embrace our new reality anyway.
I hope my own journey through the lens of the polaroid camera reminds you of your own strength and silver linings over the last year.
The two photos above are from a vacation my fiancé, Dylan and I took before the world shut down. We visited Vancouver, Canada, Bellingham, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. At the time, there were a handful of coronavirus cases in Seattle, which made us nervous, but there were no travel advisories at the time.
March 16, 2020
The onset of the pandemic meant that both Dylan and I were working from home out of our one-bedroom apartment. Our apartment had only one desk in the bedroom, so we took turns working out of either the bedroom or from the kitchen table.
April 2, 2020
Like many, when the pandemic first started, we didn’t expect it would change our lives forever. We thought we’d be “back to normal” in a couple of weeks, so we relished the opportunity to spend more time at home and to try new recipes.
April 18, 2020
Before the era of COVID, I only ordered the occasional take-out pizza from Domino’s. Once enjoying meals in restaurants were replaced completely with take-out food, I quickly learned to stop ordering fried food, or even burgers. They just didn’t taste the same.
April 19, 2020
There was a lot of confusion around wearing masks at first. We weren’t supposed to wear them, then we were. Wearing a cloth mask felt so foreign, and it was hard to get used to. Since it was all so new, materials to make handmade masks were in short supply. We shared homemade masks amongst friends and family.
July 11, 2020
Not being able to do our regular summer activities, we did a lot of camping during the summer of 2020. We went backpacking in Rocky Mountain National Park and camped at campgrounds closer to the city. It was an escape from our small apartment, and we were safe from close contact with others in the woods.
October 11, 2020
We had planned to move in July, but postponed it to November due to the pandemic. We started packing up boxes in mid-October, and couldn’t wait for our move to Bend, Oregon.
November 26, 2020
The Christmas season meant a break from traditions. We drove northwest along this road with mountain views to pick up a special take-out meal for Thanksgiving.
December 25, 2020
It was a quiet Christmas, with just Dylan, our dog, Garfunkel, and me. We spent a lot of time connecting with relatives on the phone, and over FaceTime.
While there are still many unknowns with how the virus will evolve, I feel a lot better when I realize that at least it’s not March 2020, when I realized we were living through a pandemic for the first time and life as I had known it came to a screeching halt.
Let’s take a moment to appreciate ourselves for all that we’ve overcome.
Janay Wright is a freelance writer who draws on her human experience to explore ideas related to everyday life, personal growth, and social justice.
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