Happy New Year, Oklahoma! There is light up ahead, at the end of this very long tunnel we have been traveling since last March. The first phase of COVID-19 vaccinations began last month with distribution to health care workers, long-term care residents, EMTs and paramedics, and public health staff.

2020 has certainty been a year of years. I do not need to recount the events of this year; we all know them too well. It is just strange to think that it was less than a year ago since we impeached the president, yet it seems more like a decade. As we think back over the events of the past 12 months, it may be helpful to know that 2020 is not unique. We have had other years in which we did not know if we would survive, especially years in the middle of wars. Yet we always did. One year in particular has come to my mind. As crazy as 2020 was, 1919 gave it a run for its money, and, like always, we endured and overcame.

“When polls said only about half of all Americans would take a vaccine, I was saying herd immunity would take 70 to 75 percent,” Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and public face of the federal government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, told the New York Times in December. “Then, when newer surveys said 60 percent or more would take it, I thought, ‘I can nudge this up a bit,’ so I went to 80, 85.”

Dave Ramsey is a seventime #1 national best-selling author, personal finance expert, and host of The Dave Ramsey Show, heard by more than 16 million listeners each week. He has appeared on Good Morning America, CBS This Morning, Today Show, Fox News, CNN, Fox Business, and many more. Since 1992, Dave has helped people regain control of their money, build wealth and enhance their lives. He also serves as CEO for Ramsey Solutions.

Quarantining during this time of COVID-19 has provided opportunities to watch some movies that I have always wanted to see. One of those is “It’s a Wonderful Life,” starring Jimmy Stewart and Donna Reed.

While 2020 has certainly been one of the most challenging years in modern history and recent memory, there is hope on the horizon that better days are ahead. Although the world is still reeling from the destruction caused by the coronavirus pandemic, glimmers of hope are brightening more each day with the discovery, development and delivery of safe and effective vaccines to save lives and eliminate COVID-19’s stranglehold on society. Indeed, this scientific achievement is coming faster than any other time in human history, and for that, we can and should be exceedingly grateful.

“Military leaders are worried about the shrinking pool of young people who qualify for military service,” Gina Harkins reports at Military. com. “More than 70% of young Americans remain unable to join the military due to obesity, education problems, or crime and drug records.”

This week, the first COVID-19 vaccines are being distributed to Oklahoma and across the country. President Trump’s work and commitment to Operation Warp Speed, have ensured that we are now closer than ever to defeating this invisible enemy. There have been many things said about the vaccine regarding its safety, the process of developing it, and whether people will be forced to get it. I want to set the record straight on some of the most common concerns about the COVID-19 vaccine.

Let me begin by wishing you all a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Festivus and lastly, Winter Solstice. Reaching the Winter Solstice means that each day will be a bit brighter than the last; we have made it through literally the darkest part of the year. Figuratively, we still have just a bit longer before the darkness grows brighter.

As I read over the article I was going to send out today, I realized it was too depressing. Instead of comparing the events of this past year to history, I decided I needed something more uplifting, like Christmas. For many, Christmas is the happiest time of the year. For Christians, it celebrates the birth of the baby Jesus when the Angels proclaimed to the shepherds, “Peace and good will towards men.”