You have my gratitude

Thank you. (yes, you).

I’ll start by acknowledging that this year has been tough for many of us. I know I’m not the only one who has found solace and community through iNat this year, but I wanted to express my personal gratitude. To you, the people who are the iNat community.

iNat has helped ground me through some of the darkest times of my life in the last year and a half. Its community has bolstered me. I’ve made friends I would otherwise never have met. And without the people who provide IDs, leave comments on observations, who contribute to the Forum, add observations – all the hundreds of thousands of people who contribute to iNat – this place would not exist.

Through months of isolation and loneliness, not only during quarantines and lockdowns but also before that, as recently discharged civilian trying to relearn how to live a normal life.

Through months of desperately fighting for my life as I struggled through the worst of my depression and through crippling anxiety

You have all been there.

I know nobody did any of this specifically for me, of course. That doesn’t matter. You’ve chosen to be part of a community of people who give of their time and energy to freely contribute to science. And who use iNat as a resource for learning about the world around us, and who choose to open their eyes to observe the wonders of nature. I appreciate every one of you.

Be kind to one another. Be generous with your time and your patience. You never know what others are going through, and you may make all the difference in that person’s life.

Wishing for a calm, bright, and joyous holiday and new year for us all.

With sincerest gratitude,

@astra_the_dragon
aka
Tchaylet Handel

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That is a lovely, heartfelt testimony to this community and the healing power of the natural world. Thank you for expressing this so beautifully; and for all your contributions to making iNat an interesting and safe place to hangout.:love_letter:

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The only thing I am able to possibly add to this magnificent letter is have a merry Christmas everyone!

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Thank you, too, Tchaylet. For these beautiful words and for being here, on iNat. I can only join this beautiful testimony by adding my thanks to everybody: staff, curators, IDers and these whose photos provide great moments while IDing, consulting or just enjoying.

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Not only is this a lovely tribute to the iNat community and site, but it’s beautifully written as well. Wishing you and all, safer, happier, (and for those especially in the Northern parts of the world) warmer days ahead. Thank you for your kind words. Take care and be well.

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You have my gratitude, too. I work in a profession that is all about conflict, and ideally, about conflict resolution. The collaboration I see here is an inspiration for me in helping my clients and reminds me daily that we all need a little more information before digging into a position.

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iNat changed everything perspective of me about my life, it made me love nature, it made me care about it, it made me realise my true passion, it made me chose a carrier in a field which would keep me always attached to the nature and help in conversation of beautiful wildlife ! iNat made me a true butterfly enthusiast, a true birder, a true nature lover !

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Good morning

It’s a very strangely twisted time, this time of pandemic.

The first lockdown in spring was difficult. But there was also something mystical, enchanted and contemplative about the world at that time: the emptiness, the calmness, the slowness of life. It seemed as if suddenly completely new, unimagined possibilities were opening up.

Then came the summer. The restrictions have been somewhat relaxed. Nevertheless, I could only meet other people to a limited extent or not at all. Many trips were not possible or I renounced them out of discomfort and respect for the uncertain situation.

With autumn and winter, everything has become grey, narrow and scary. The annual decline of life in nature is ominously reinforced by new lockdown in our own lives. It has become very cold, in all respects. From the burgeoning hope for change to a more positive approach to our planet, I now feel nothing.

It was precisely at this time that I came across iNaturalist by chance. Suddenly I felt connected to the whole world of people who care about nature. I can communicate with people who live on the other side of the planet, I can read their contributions, share in their observations. The more limited my contacts have become here in my own country, the further they have become with the whole world. I cannot meet people in person, which is very regrettable, but there is still a sense of infinity at a time when limits of all kinds are curtailing our freedom of movement and our possibilities.

I am happy to have found iNaturalist. I would like to thank all those who are posting here and making the iNaturalist institution alive.

I wish you all, all of us, a lot of satisfaction and, above all, health in 2021. May all of us live again, together with the coming spring in the northern hemisphere of our earth.

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Nature inspires and heals us poor humans. I quickly grabbed the binoculars, not the camera, to watch two mature doe deer grazing at the end of our pond this afternoon. Suddenly my view was obscured as a huge pair of silent wings (a resident barred owl who was monitoring the open water at pond’s edge) crossed overhead and startled away the white-tails. I’ll keep my eyes open: I am alone since my husband died one month ago, but nature is here to console me.

I second this lovely statement of gratitude for the natural world.

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I’m sorry for your loss. Take the time you need to heal, and I hope that this community can give you strength and a little peace.

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2020 has been a tough year for everyone, I wish I’d discovered this site earlier than today.

Wishing that 2021 brings everyone more appreciation of what we have and enjoy the natural beauty this planet has to offer.

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