For many of us, 2020 has been a doozy and something we are running to get away from! For me, there have been some high points and some low points. One time I when I was much younger I was changing the calendar month days before it was time, and my father said no you change it on the day you need to change it because you don’t want to rush your time! At the time that time I probably looked at him like, huh is it really that serious! BUT YES, it really is that serious! I’m looking forward to another year, but definitely don’t want to rush my time!
Our (me and my family) year started off pretty normal until we started hearing of the COVID Virus. Not sure what was really going on but we all started prepping! We had a family meeting at my sisters house, and she prepped our immune systems, I don’t think I’ve ever taken so many vitamins and supplements in my life! But it works, and I thank God for all of her knowledge! She held class with us! She schooled us on what to take, when to take it, what to start taking when we felt a symptom come on and so on and so forth!
When things started shutting down my husband was a couple of weeks out of surgery, wait let me take that back I believe it was like a week out of surgery! And due to them being a little negligent in his procedure he had to return to the emergency room because he was starting to build up infection! Talk about scary! I look at him like a superhero because he’s so strong and seeing him in so much pain was so scary! He had this same procedure a couple of years ago on his other hand so we had been through this before and although this time was a little more extensive we knew he shouldn’t have been doubled over in pain!
Once we got him squared away, and on the road to the proper recovery the schools started shutting down! Which meant that I also started working from home. The four is us we’re home together from Mid-March through June/July-ish! Life wasn’t bad at home, we actually enjoyed it! We played games, we watched movies, we took walks, we took long rides in the car, whatever we could do to keep our minds occupied we did…that’s majority of the battle with keeping yourself healthy!
We learned to live through a pandemic! We wore mask and eventually enjoyed a little bit of the outside world! God Kept Us!!!
During all of this when Darrick returned to work, he was met with a shift change, and us becoming apart of the statistics of family’s that had to utilize unemployment (he was working two-weeks on/two weeks off)…but God Kept Us!
There were parts of the pandemic that I have loved and that’s the way we banned together as family! If there was something you got at the store that you knew someone else needed you grabbed it and dropped it off to them! It reminded me of the times my parents and grandparents used to talk about when the community really was a community! The village kicked into high gear and we watched out for each other and helped each other more than we do on a normal basis! The world panicked, and the grocery stores were hit in a major way…so we shared lots of resources during this time!
I’m writing this so I can forever keep it in my memory! I don’t ever want to forget 2020, and frankly there are some things that I plan to take into next year with me that 2020 taught me!
What 2020 has taught me…
You should ALWAYS have “cushion” and basic necessities in your house! NEVER let yourself get down to your last! Even if you have to buy one individual roll of toilet paper because that’s all you can afford-do it! Also, prep your house for certain things such as the power going out and so on…this is actually something I need to restock our house for but BE PREPARED! Even when it seems like you’re prepping for the end, hey you never know!
Always keep your pantry as stocked as you can! There will always be a struggle with this because LIFE is hard! But if you can buy a couple of extra non-perishable items when you grocery shop, as well as when you shop for your toiletries as well!
SLOW DOWN…life is not meant to always be on the go! When life slowed down, for a lot of us-myself included we anxiety trying to adjust to slowing down! This should never be the case! Take the time to enjoy each and every day!!!!
Stop Procrastinating!!! I may be speaking to myself strongly with this one! There were so many people when the world shut down that said I should’ve done this and I said oh I will wait! No if something comes to mind, or someone is on your mind…reach out to them! Even if it’s only with a quick text message! There is a blessing each day, and you need to marvel in that! There were so many horror stories in life and in the news…take the time each day to enjoy the blessings of the day! Waking up should no longer be taken for granted!
Eat your fruits and veggies!!! Y’all my sister gave us all a wake up call! We often joked about our family meeting, because in true family format it came with belly laughs, her getting frustrated at us for not taking things seriously…but when it came down to it we were serious and sometimes had to laugh to keep from crying!
Technology has been a life saver! For those that go around saying I’m not a “techy” person…I don’t expect you to be a guru but you need to increase your knowledge for yourself! Technology has been our lifeline at some points this year, especially with the holidays being virtual for us! So upgrade that phone, or tablet…or get you a computer with a webcam so in the event we can’t be together in person you have a lifeline to not only talk to others but see them too! Sometimes you need to be able to lay your eyes on someone!
Eat the Cookies…in moderation and DON’T feel bad about it! This year was stressful, and like me a lot of us ate through our feelings! Is it the best coping mechanism no, but don’t you feel bad about it! Most of us have never been through a pandemic, and we all navigated the process differently! And frankly tell those who have commented on your weight to “shut the hell up”…yep, just like that! Because I’ve heard some comments, read some comments and if this pandemic taught you one thing it was to worry about yourself! So don’t go commenting on others, their children, family…keep your comments to yourself! Because I’m sure if they fired off at you about yourself you wouldn’t be happy! We all have something to work on!!!
One more thing, sit and have conversations with your children! Prior to the pandemic we were a family that for the most part sits and has dinner together nightly! We either watch a TV show together and laugh and enjoy the show, or we have random conversations! Darrick and I knew how we were dealing with the pandemic but this gave us the opportunity to sit and listen to how the kids felt! Some days they had the weight of the world on them because no matter how we tried to shield them they were experiencing the pandemic too!
As I read through this post, it’s like one big oxymoron! Be prepared, buy all the things but take the time to just BE! LOL! It’s a lot but find YOUR balance in all of this! And remember to take the time to laugh!!! Life is short and even in the hard times there is something to laugh at! Turn on the music and sing and dance, I haven’t told Darrick this but some of our best times at home during this season was when he would turn on his record player (THANK GOD he asked for that last Christmas), and we all danced and sang at home together!
