While we were on a worldwide lockdown in 2020, I did some writing. We were all spending way more time at home. Once my kids got into the swing of doing virtual school, my schedule lightened up a bit. I took the opportunity to write down some of what I was feeling and thinking at that time. I, of course, used this space to do that. While looking at some of my unpublished posts, I came across this one. I realize I was feeling a lot of things that made it clear that life is what we make it. It was never more clear that we needed to get about the business of making it. It sums up a lot of what I was feeling at the time. I don’t know why I didn’t publish it then.
Check it out and let me know if you were in the same space as me. It’s amazing how much we went through and how much has changed.
Looking Back at 2020
It was a whole different world just over two weeks ago. Do you know when we did crazy stuff like dropping our kids off at school? We went out to eat at restaurants after church. Oh yeah, we went to church. My kids played at the park every day after school. How quickly things change.
I try to live in gratitude. I don’t want to take anything for granted. My life is one of massive privilege and I don’t forget it. Being able to stay home with my kids over these last several years has been a gift. Being an integral part of the growth my family has experienced is a blessing. I always knew that I was blessed to be able to drop them off and pick them up from school.
It’s amazing how all of the day-to-day things we used to do now take on a whole new meaning. They don’t seem so little anymore. If nothing else, this quarantine time has reminded us of what and who really matters. Running to the grocery store used to be a simple task. Now, I’m scared every time my husband makes a grocery run. He’s somehow become our designated shopper. He wears a mask and gloves for the trip. I meet him at the door with a change of clothes and make sure he leaves the shoes in the garage. I’m disinfecting groceries. I never thought I’d write those words.
Whenever we can go to church again I don’t think anyone will be in a rush to turn and hi-five their neighbor. Is that going to be a part of our old normal now? Is the new normal going to have us more socially awkward? Things are already so different. I’m trying to distance myself from the news but I can’t. I’m walking around praying for strangers whose stories I’ve read on social media.
My Kids’ Sports Were Scrapped
I almost forgot that we were in the middle of the basketball season. That got scrapped along with my daughter’s soccer season. My son was signed up for track and field – that’s gone too. He’s sad because he was looking forward to going to his friend’s 6th-grade graduation and it looks like that’s going to be canceled.
At this point, the kids are likely out of school until the Fall. On the other side of this, I wonder what we’ll all be like. There are those who we’ve lost to COVID-19, those who are battling the virus, and those who are scared to death of being the next victim. Of course, some people seem to be taking it all way too lightly.
I hope that once this is over we are different in the best ways. My hope is we make sure our lives reflect our priorities. I hope we spend more time on the things we’ve now been reminded to focus on.
