Phew. We made it – what a doozie of a year, am I right?
I will never forget sitting in a coffee shop with a couple of my friends the first day of 2020, dreaming and discussing what the year would look like.
And a few months later…it looked nothing like we hoped or dreamed it would be.
The world seemed to stop and everything shut down.
How were we supposed to go on when there was so much unknown?
It felt like we were stuck in a time-warp – hours, days, and months seemed to pass while we remained still – in the safety of our homes.
There is no doubt that 2020 was a hard, challenging year, but in the midst of all the unrelenting torment, there was beauty in the fire. So as 2021 begins, I wanted to share five things I learned during 2020:
1. Endurance - I’m not going to lie. 2020 was hard. It broke me, challenged me, and stretched me like it did too many others I’m sure. One thing I was not going to let it do – stop me from growing. 2020 taught me to persevere and endure all the hardships I encountered physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually.
2. Savor every minute – as I watched the hours and days go by, I started taking in every interaction through a different lens. I found myself being more present with the people I was with or talking to instead of letting distractions get in the way. I started reaching out and connecting more through FaceTime, Zoom, and just plain old phone calls. It taught me to be with people in a whole new way and really love each minute instead of living for the next time we could get together.
3. Always choose joy – no matter what life throws at you, you have the power to choose how you are going to handle it. When you choose joy, you decide to let go of things you can’t control, you decide to have compassion for others and yourself, you choose gratitude over sadness, and rest over busyness.
4. Always be kind – kindness matters, especially now in a time of so much divide and discord. We need it more now than ever.
5. Always tell someone what they mean to you – don’t ever take the people in your life for granted. Chances are they're in your life for a reason, so take this time to speak life, encourage, and tell them what they mean to you. You never know when you might get another chance. Take advantage of the time you have right here, right now. Too often we take time for granted. We live like we have endless amounts of it to squander when in reality, we never know how much time we truly have. So choose to love them with all you have and don’t hold back.
As I move forward, I’m choosing to take what worked well in 2020 with me into 2021 and I hope you do the same. I think it is important that we all look back in order to move forward.
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