The Balancing Act that was 2020…
The Balancing Act that was 2020...
By: LaLacia Kane
With good comes bad and with bad comes good. This saying could not be more true for the year that was 2020. When 2020 started there was a hope in the air, that hope held on in January, then started to wane in February and by March the whole world was thrown into turmoil. A global pandemic happened and the Corona Virus had hit American Shores causing dissension and separation. From the new normal of wearing masks in public, washing your hands 20 times a day, homeschooling your children and working from home everyone had some strong opinions on how our government handled and is still handling the virus. In one corner you had people who believed the Corona Virus was a hoax, and then you had the opposite end of the spectrum: the people who refused to go outside their houses in total fear of getting the horrible virus. This blog post is not going to get political, just reflection on the year of 2020.
My family was somewhat in the middle, going out if the crowds were down. I remember driving by the Farmhouse brewery in October for our going away party and seeing a huge crowd, immediately I called the mom tribe and we moved to plan B. We went to a Mexican food restaurant and sat outside away from people and still had a great time, while limiting our interaction, thus limiting the chance we get the virus.
2020 has been described as a dumpster fire, terrible worst year ever. As Myla my oldest would say “I give 2020 two stars.” However, I have seen several posts on social media by the humans who have lived through a global pandemic as grateful, self-resilient and optimistic. I would love it, if I could say I was all rainbows and sunshine for 2020, but I was not, there were times when the year was hard. It was hard navigating homeschooling my girls. It was hard because they did not get to see their friends and socialize in school. It was hard canceling plans, worrying about that person in the grocery store who got a little to close “do they have the virus?” Thinking “Back off dude! Do YOU not realize it’s a pandemic.” Hell at some points in 2020 it was hard to find toilet paper.
Despite all the hardships of 2020, I am grateful, grateful I got to spend more time with my girls. Grateful I still had an income, a roof over my families head, and food on the table. Grateful to spend more time with my husband, grateful I was able to travel (cautiously) to Oklahoma to celebrate my Nephews birthday. Grateful I got an awesome 37th birthday in Mexico with my mom and aunties. (Again cautiously) Grateful we had the smoothest move ever to Miami.
Overall though I feel as a society the biggest lesson learned of 2020 was how to balance. How to see the good in the bad, how to cherish the time with family. How to reconnect with friends and make new friends.2020 forced us to get out of our comfort zone. Our neighborhood in Virginia was quiet and once the pandemic started forcing us outside to run, swim in the inflatable pools on the lawn, having water gun fights and letting the kiddos play robbers on their bikes with the other neighborhood kids I finally met my neighbors. We lived in the Virginia house three years and only knew a few of our neighbors.
2020 most of all forced us to slow down. 2020 forced us to figure out what really matters, family, connection, and self care, and for that I am grateful. Going into 2021 I know I can balance work, life and family, because I was already tested in 2020. And for the most part I feel like I passed.
Happy New Year to all my readers, may 2021 bring you health, happiness and balance.