Well, 2020 is just about over, and what a year its been. I would never have thought that the year would have turned out the way it did, both for good and bad.

The year started with talk of a virus far overseas that wouldn't cause a problem, and an expert saying we might have a couple of dozen cases in my country. Winter became spring, and events started taking place, but it quickly became apparent that Covid 19 was a much bigger problem. After attendance of just one event, the country was placed into lockdown, my office became a room in my house, and I would not physically see my work colleagues for some time.

Life, as I knew it, had gone. It became a monotonous mixture of work from home, and time off, spent at home. The Sunday roast which I so often miss in a normal year became a weekly highlight. Events, months into the future, were cancelled or postponed.

And then, a turning point. I had started to write a little again by the time the summer months had arrived, the result of a ruined sleep schedule. It was when idly trawling through the Internet that I stumbled upon a picture which instantly grabbed my attention. It was a fursuiter (not that I knew much at the time). I delved a little deeper and found out a little about furries. Now, my inquisitive nature resulted in me reading a little more into it, and discovering the release of a new documentary film charting the course of this fandom, and it was released in a couple of days.

That weekend, having the house to myself allowed me to watch this film. If there was ever a moment when random parts of my life slid into place, that was it. It was a realisation - a revelation - that I was a furry by definition, that it seemed I always had been, and that I had now discovered I wasn't the only one. I was part of this now, and there was no turning back.

Now, amongst my eclectic music tastes, I have a number of soundtrack albums. Film scores are often great in their own right, and the one to The Fandom was no exception - it carried the emotions of the film scenes. I needed to find out who had created this work. The answer was Fox Amoore and Pepper Coyote.

So, the next evening, I looked up Fox, and found some of his music on Spotify. A shuffle play of artist tracks and, I was blown away. Expanding through other works saw me delve into Pepper's music, and the stuff they had done together.

So what next... Well, I'd heard Keepers of the Light, and seen it was a soundtrack song. So, ever inquisitive, I looked it up and found the PawPetShow, and that Keepers was available to view for free on YouTube. I started to watch, and was hooked. What I'd originally planned to view over the course of a few late nights I'd devoured in one sitting, and it was heading on for 4am.

Move forward a few more weeks, and EuroFurence was holding an online con in place of the physical one. Attending most of the virtual event, I had what can only be described as the best weekend of the year - it felt special.

I'd already spoken with a couple of furs between finding the fandom and EFO, but I spoke with several more there - some of which I have made good friendships with.

So what's happened since then? Well, that was the last major turning point in the year. Six months being a part of the furry community, I wouldn't change it for the world. I've made so many new friends from all over the world, seen so much amazing art of all kinds - there is so much talent within the fandom. I feel like I belong here, and can't believe how welcoming the community has been.

So, as we say goodbye to the old year, it's good riddance in many ways, but I can look back at 2020 with happiness about finding myself.

I hope that 2021 can start to bring normality back to the world, that this virus starts to decline, and that we can start doing the things we enjoy again. Now for me, that list has become a whole lot longer, with the hope that now I will be able to attend meets and cons when it's safe to do so too.