Word of the Year

Did you know the dictionary people at Merriam-Webster choose an annual word of the year and have been doing that for 2003? (See, you really can learn something by reading people's blogs). 

For all you data geeks, the words are chosen by data. That means that it must have been looked up more than other words in the past year, and it must have seen a really large increase in lookups since the previous year.

The word for 2021: vaccine. 

Of course. You knew that, right? I guessed it while driving home the other day and was extremely proud of myself. But it was easy to guess because like it or note, the COVID vaccine affected all of us this year--and in a way, it could almost be the word of the year for many years to come.

I got my first dose of the COVID vaccine on January 21 at Cassia, which serves older adults through housing, health care and community services. I got it there because I work there--and because Cassia has its own inhouse pharmacy (called A&E Pharmacy). A&E already had a relationship with the organization's clinical teams and communities--and could offer vaccines quickly to residents and staff.

After finding the pharmacy had additional doses, Cassia and the pharmacy team included essential caregivers, hospice and respiratory vendors, family and others. They were also asked by the state to go into underserved communities and vaccinate people there. 

When Cassia offered to vaccinate family members, it allowed my husband Pete to get vaccinated as well. That was a huge deal to us because Pete drives trucks for a living and is out in the world more than most. He was also recovering from a year when shingles nearly took his eye and he has one and a half lungs due to a prior skiing accident.

The morning we both arrived at Cassia to get our vaccines was cold and sunny. I will never forget sitting in the parking lot and turning off the ignition of my car. 

I waited until the appointed time and knew Pete was coming soon in his car (having to go to work later that day). My coworkers/friends checked me in with big, welcoming smiles. And when I rolled up my sleeve and the pharmacist started the vaccination, I realized how much the pandemic had taken away from me--and how the vaccine was going to help me get it back.

The second shot was February 11 and my husband and I took a picture afterward, calling ourselves "vaccine valentines." The vaccines allowed us to feel safe about traveling to New York in August to meet our grandchild and see family and friends we hadn't seen since Thanksgiving 2019.

We've since had booster shots that allowed us to go to our son and daughter in law's Jewish wedding (after a civil one in 2020). We tested negative after coming home and I know it was the booster shot that helped us stay away from COVID. 

So yes, vaccine deserves its honor this year. I know there are a lot of people who want nothing to do with it and still others who are protesting mandates. But I myself am very grateful to the vaccine and the people who invented it--and to Cassia and A&E, for bringing it to more than 18,000 people in 2021.

Not only bringing it--but making it feel like a lovely morning with friends.

Because it was.