saying goodbye to the year that changed the whole world

Happy New Year. I genuinely hope that this one brings a progression of clarity, a build-up of love, a chain of constant care and support and a time for you to give yourself that time to continue to grow strong as you already are.

*Disclaimer: I started drafting this before the New Year, in case you were wondering why there are two parts to this post.

2020:

Who knew it? Who knew that we'd all make it this far towards the end of what most can proclaim as the most sh*ttiest year of all time?

Give yourself a round of applause because you did more than anyone would actually expect you to do during a global crisis/catastrophe. What you did was make it out alive, healthy and strong in ways you probably didn't know you were capable of having.

This year was undoubtedly one of the hardest years (if not the hardest) any individual could ever go through. What an experience it was, and sad to say that it's going to continue into the next coming year. Let's be honest and realistic here - the decade of the 2020's has now forever been impacted by the chain of events from this year alone. The reassuring part of it is that we went through it (and still will be) all as one.

Despite the division between opinions, views, thoughts - whatever it is - we still overcame what felt like the hardest year.

I've lost count of the many reasons why the year 2020 can be highlighted as the most ridiculous year of all time. If you want to be sensible with it, then call it the most surreal year of all time, because it's still shocking that this is said and claimed to be the new 'norm'.

But with this being said, what can we even classify as 'normal'?

There have been multiple opinions being expressed: that they cannot wait any longer to go back to 'normal'; sorry to break the sad news, but we've most likely departed from that previous lifestyle and a new norm has to be created with the one that we've been inhabiting over the past nine months or so.

Now, you may get onto my case about being such a killjoy in today's post, but I had to say what can be seen as the hard truth (no negative feelings intended).

I'm pretty sure anyone reading this would be able to give me more than one personal reason why this year wasn't the best year for them as an individual. I'm not expecting anyone to actually tell me - this would be me breaching one's personal privacy and I don't really find any entertainment or intention in doing that.

Instead, I hope you find some sort of reflection towards these contributions and instead divert them into ways that have benefitted you or allowed you to be able to gain some sort of blessing or privilege.

Now that doesn't mean compare between someone else's situation and yours, but focus.

Solely. On. Yours.

Think to yourself:

-Even though things were put on a pause and the time within this year did freeze, what did you achieve and accomplish with all of this going on?

-If something unusual has happened to you, on a personal level, what have you learnt from this experience? (this can still be ongoing).

-If you've battled so much during this year, have you given yourself the appreciation? (you've most likely done more than what you'd think you'd be able to do and less than initially intended, considering that we are in a global pandemic right now).

As I stated at the start of 2020: This was the year of SELF LOVE and SELF CARE.

I hope most of us have been able to manifest this due to the fact that lockdown led us to have no choice but to stay at home, stay safe and I guess look after ourselves. It gave us the time to do things that we never really had the time to do when life before the pandemic was the life we were living.

There are the positives out of this year :) - you've just got to pick them out in a special way.

We can only thank 2020 being a year of growth because of the hardships and endless strains of challenges we had to face: increase with mental health difficulties, isolation (physical and mental), the uncertainty and unprecedented time (that we are still living in) and so many more. It can be highlighted as a period of self reflection (or self destruction - whatever you may call it) and extreme character building - realising you can do things with the time you have because there is only so much time when you're at home living groundhog day 24/7.

Commend yourself for having made it into 2021, because you and I both know that many sadly didn't.

2021:

So the New Year.

Yeah, okay you may be thinking: what the f*ck even is this?

Another lockdown (highly expected anyway) and we continue as we were from last March.

Doesn't really feel like something 'new' does it?

Many have told me that 2021 ended after one week - which I get, it feels like there is simply nothing to be looking forward to at this rate.

You may think, why the sudden switch from drawing out the positives to now gunning it with the negatives? Well, the chain of events from last year seem to have continued onto the next: the UK under national lockdown, the increase of cases (overwhelming the UK's national health service), schools moving to online (good and not so good for some), a second year running of summer exam cancellations, university students and the negligence that they receive, consistent uproars with governments across the world - not to mention what has happened recently with the riots (if you're sane, you'd address it as that) in the US Capitol and Trump being all for it (he can go do one) So, do I really need to say anymore?

Of course, find the good within all that may seem bad. There are benefits to some things mentioned. But all of this has been achieved/continued in the span of one week. Who knows what the rest of the year is going to look like at this stage.

Where do we go from here?

Stay at home, absorb the information and stay safe. At this point, we can only play our part by simply looking after ourselves.

SELF TIME and SELF PRIORITY.

These two things are what I have in mind for this year because physical and mental (especially) are the things that you ought to be making time to take care of, as they are both are part of you as a priority.

You are doing your part with school, work, responsibilities etc. Now it's time to do your part with you.

Prioritise the beloved 'ME TIME'. I don't care what it is that you do, as long as you're taking time to look after yourself.

-Read that book

-Research something at your interest

-Play on your X-Box

-Make those ticktocks

-Binge watch your YouTube or Netflix videos

-Go for a walk

-Cook your favourite food

Reward yourself with self time and prioritising you because you deserve it more than ever with another year of going through a global pandemic and everything else going on behind the scenes.

Stay amazing.

x

08|01|2021