For most of us 2021 has been another hard year.
We started the year with a winter lockdown as case numbers soared and deaths followed.
The vaccine programme moved quickly, though, and by summer we were experiencing the joy of seeing our city spring back to life as restrictions were lifted.
Restaurants and bars filled, Parklife and Pride returned, the sun shone. It felt like a small miracle.
England reaching the final of the Euros added to the euphoria.
So often during this pandemic hopes have been raised and dashed.
True enough by winter, as we looked ahead to a relatively normal Christmas, Covid played another hand.
By the winter solstice our city was seeing the highest infection rates it has ever seen.
So, here we are again.
One year on - facing possible restrictions, with case numbers climbing and the already under pressure NHS facing some of the most difficult weeks in its history (again).
Exhausted NHS workers, looking ahead to the next few months as the Omicron wave rolls in, must surely be filled with worry and despair - but still they battle on.
Often underappreciated, sometimes outright vilified - and let us say it - almost always underpaid, they continue to save lives in extraordinarily difficult circumstances.
One of the things we're most proud of this year is our series of stories under the banner 'On The Covid Frontline'.
For the articles our reporters went into hospitals, into intensive care units, into Covid wards, and into mortuaries to bring you the heart-breaking truth about the impact of this disease.
These articles should leave no one in doubt about the seriousness of this virus and the vital importance of vaccinations and boosters.
In an age of misinformation we did what journalists should do - we went to find out for ourselves - and then we told you.
There is hope, of course .
The development of antiviral treatments for Covid is continuing apace.
The remarkable vaccines and boosters have proven effective against even this most brutal new strain. And crucially this new variant seems to be less deadly than the previous Delta version.
As we face the coming months there is so much uncertainty.
There is uncertainty about how the NHS will cope, there is uncertainty about what restrictions we might face and how the economy will respond.
But what isn't uncertain, and is never in doubt, is the resilience of this great city and you, our readers.
We've come this far, it's only a little further. Keep going.
As ever we'll be by your side for whatever comes next.
From all at the Manchester Evening News, have a safe and happy Christmas and a peaceful New Year.
