Last but not least, this year saw a lot of acts of kindness. Some were from individuals and others took a whole community to put together — but all of them are heartwarming.

Orchestra brings Beethoven to the deaf: In early February, Budapest’s Danubia orchestra played a concert for the hearing impaired. Using special hyper-sensitive hearing aids, balloons that convey vibrations, and in some instances by placing their hands on the instruments themselves, the audience was able to “feel,” or “hear through touch,” the music. Aptly, the orchestra chose to perform Beethoven’s fifth symphony, the piece he wrote as his hearing was deteriorating – its opening motif has forebodingly come to be called “fate knocking at the door” in reference to the loss that would soon afflict him. The composer is said to have written the music on his piano by feeling the vibration of the notes.

Eid prayer in Ikea parking lot: Bound by strict safety precautions at the height of the pandemic, Muslims in the German town of Wetzlar near Frankfurt still found a way to hold a mass prayer during Eid El Fitr — in the car park of the local Ikea branch. The store’s management “didn’t hesitate” to host the prayer organised by the Ditib Wetzlar mosque. Pictures of the around 800 masked, socially distanced worshippers spread across the asphalt quickly went viral on social media. The event helped lift the spirits of those who attended following a difficult Ramadan — typically a time to celebrate community — marked by reduced contact and visits for breaking the fast.

In Yemen, a cafe by women, for women: In defiance of convention, a cafe in Yemen’s Marib was opened by women, for women. The very word “cafe” comes with stigma and negative connotations in the region, but that didn’t stop Um Feras and her associates from launching the women-only space as a safe hazen from the fighting, a place to catch up and enjoy the odd steaming treat. A stickler for quality, Um Feras imports most of her beans, and looks forward to expanding her enterprise into a leisure spot for women and children.