My Reflections on 2020

As the title of this blog post implies, this post is about my reflections on the year that is soon ending. Tomorrow will be my "Personal Favorites of the Year" post and then we'll usher in a new year the day after that.

I totally understand if you want to scroll past these reflections to the end of this post and check out my card. (There IS a card at the end of this wordy post!) Feel free to do so, if that is your wish. I promise I won't be offended. Sheesh! I wouldn't even know you'd done so. LOL!

I had such high hopes for the year... 366 days ago. Then March arrived and with it, my world (as I know it) changed. In an instant. The first week of March, as the pandemic was taking hold here in our area, my husband and I made the decision to keep our son Brock home from the sheltered workshop where he spends four days a week. They do an outstanding job, but I just felt the risk was too great. Apparently they agreed, because not more than a day or two later, they temporarily closed. Brock being home required me to stay home, too, but I was okay with that because after all, I didn't want to take the risk of getting sick and him getting it from me.

What I didn't anticipate in early March was that we'd still be doing this on December 30th, nor does it look like we'll be seeing any change in the plan in the next two months, which means we will be sheltering at home for an entire year (maybe even longer).

There are certainly a lot of "woe is me" things I could say about that - couldn't we all? However, I tend to be the one whose cup is always half full (the eternal optimist) so instead I'd like to reflect on some positives.

My word for 2020 is Optimize (to make as perfect, effective, or functional as possible)... and I truly believe that I have embraced that word more than any of my words in recent years. For instance, when my shut-down started and I knew that for the foreseeable future I would not be going to out-of-town meetings and the many other things that normally fill my days, I took steps to make sure I didn't just waste the time at home. I started what I called my Stay@Home Organizational Challenge, spending at least 10 minutes every day going through everything in my playroom, purging and organizing. It was a task that definitely needed to be done... and it was freeing to get things in better order. 

I learned to Zoom this year, as did many of you. (Some of my meetings turned into Microsoft Team Meetings, so I also learned how to do that.) A highlight of the year was when Brock's sheltered workshop started Zoom meetings with the clients. Five days a week most months. Those 30 minutes are fun. They play games, learn to draw things like penguins and reindeer, learn dance moves and more. Brock's favorite is Bingo! I rejoice with him when he gets to see his friends on my computer screen. Because I sit beside him (out of the view of others but close by to help - and to mute him when he gets noisy) I have gotten to know the other important people in his life. That has been a beautiful outcome of this year. 

Brock and I switched to online worship services during this time. I miss going to church and being with people, giving hugs, etc. I miss community... BUT I am thankful for the ways our churches have stepped up and offer online services now via FB Live. We have 25 churches (and normally attend all of them throughout the year as part of my husband's job) - probably half or more of them are now live every Sunday morning. I appreciate the efforts they've made in these unconventional times. It has been a learning curve for them, but they've done an amazing job and Brock and I benefit by attending one of the services each Sunday morning, plus I peek into a few others too. It also is a nice perk, that my husband usually gets Brock and I a donut to enjoy during church.

I've mastered monthly shopping via curbside pickup (an hour's drive away from my home). I've learned to survive without going to restaurants and have tried some new recipes - some delicious and others not so much so. LOL! I've ordered more things for home deliver this year than any other year in my life, helping out our postal system's revenue. 

I feel like I've made the best of a challenging year.

Life is different this year; but life is good!

Now, how about that card I mentioned...

If life give you lemons, smile and make lemonade. 

I guess we've all had way too much lemonade in 2020. 

Thanks for stopping by my blog today!

Stamp Set: Sparkle Creations Lemonade Ruby stamped with Memento Tuxedo Black Ink and colored with Copic Markers

Papers: Accent Opaque 120# White and SU So Saffron CS and DP from my scrap file

Dies: MFT Wonky Stitch and Rubbernecker Nested Rectangle Stitch

Embellishments: Brads from an unknown vendor