It was sunny and unusually warm in San Francisco. But deepening effects of climate change resulted in an ominous order from California officials that thousands of farms could no longer draw water from the state's rivers and creeks because there is not enough water to go around.

Far away in Geneva, two of the most powerful men in the world, Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin, prepared to meet about a new and growing concern: cyber warfare. How the United States and Russia respond to this silent threat will likely affect the lives of generations to come.

As COVID counting continued, the U.S. toll passed 600,000 deaths, highest in the world.

Still, there was celebration at Universal Studios in Hollywood, where Gov. Gavin Newsom presided over the awarding of $1.5 million to each of 10 winners in California's vaccination lottery. "We're here because of your hard work," he said, standing in front of a poster with the message, "Vax for the Win."

In San Francisco, Mayor London Breed flashed a wide smile as she announced that her city's famed cable cars would soon roll again. In Sonoma, the county health officer, Dr. Sundari Mase, said California had finally "turned the corner" in the pandemic.

On Van Ness Avenue, people were removing their masks. Inside the fifth-floor maternity unit, parents celebrated what they called "Independence Day"—the occasion when "normal" returned to their lives, just in time to mark the beginning of their babies' lives.

These infants were conceived last September when our nation was being strangled by the coronavirus and life was upside down. Businesses were shuttered. Folks sheltered. The promise of a vaccine was still months away.

Some thought that sheltering might result in a baby boom; in fact, in California just the opposite occurred. The state is expected to have 50,000 fewer births in 2021. Experts cite many factors for the decline but, during the height of the pandemic, it would seem that some couples were simply afraid to bring babies into this uncertain world.

My grandparents survived world wars and the Depression. My parents lived through decades of civil unrest and the specter of nuclear holocaust, and my own generation discovered how seriously the environment is at risk. My kids lived through 9/11 and witnessed the virtual collapse of our two-party political system, before the pandemic threatened their very existence.

As I held Emily for the first time, less than two hours after my daughter Stephanie gave birth, I wondered about her future. I can only report this: Sunlight streamed into the room, bathing the baby and her proud parents.

June 15 seemed like a wonderful day to be alive.

(c) Peter Funt. This column originally appeared in USA Today.