Here We Go Again !
Well, as hopefully, the last of the Christmas turkey has been eaten and the hangover from New Year's Eve has passed, we are all ready to start again and make the most of 2021. I think it's probably fair to say, not many people enjoyed the year which has finally ended. I would imagine the only ones who might have felt it passed too quickly are the scientists who have become a regular feature on UK television. Before the pandemic, very few would have recognised them at all, but now they are household names and are famous for bringing gloom to every occasion. It turns out, they have allegedly been paid a small fortune for being miserable too !
Aside from the obvious ongoing issues with the infamous virus, I do feel slightly hopeful, perhaps this year will bring a few more high points than 2020 managed. Now, I do realise this might just be wishful thinking on my part, but to dwell too long on grim predictions really does very little other than make us all want to retreat under the bedcovers and stay there.
So what hopes do you have for this year? I have a few of the traditional ones, like being more healthy, taking better care of myself, being kinder to people and being more mindful of our planet. But I also decided, I wanted to get back into being an author as although I do enjoy my little Redbubble shop, my first love will always be writing. So, to this end, I am very happy to report, I have indeed begun a whole new book which is completely different to anything I have written before, but hopefully, will be enjoyable. It will be some time before any kind of publication but I just wanted to share the news with you all as so many have been in touch and asked if there will be some new work from me.
I think we all hope 2021 will bring better and brighter days, more time filled with optimism and excitement and less of the anxiety and despair. Being positive in these worrying times is not always easy, just here in the UK, we don't seemed to have moved on since the outbreak began back in March. As I write this to you now, we are still in strict lockdown, there's talk of schools closing again and yet more hardship for the majority of the population. I know there are other parts of the world who are in a similar situation and to keep spirits up, has become almost a full time job in itself. Some months ago, I decided to adopt a 'one day at a time' approach as I found looking too far into the future a little bit too hard to handle. I have to say, so far, it works for most of the time but I do have some dark days, as I know many of us do.
Just before Christmas, an older lady messaged me and explained, she didn't feel she could carry on much longer. She had not been able to see her family for some time as they lived abroad, her part time job had gone and, for the first time in living memory, she was struggling to pay her bills. We exchanged messages for a while, as you might imagine, it was very hard to find the words which could make any real difference. But, then, she said, she had just realised, as she was talking with me, she could use a similar method of staying in touch with her family - even seeing them through Skype or FaceTime. She actually laughed and said, she was mad at herself for not thinking of it earlier, she thanked me and then went to set up her laptop.
Our conversation got me thinking, sometimes we can get so lost in negative thoughts, we don't look up and see how we can make things even a little better. As the saying goes, 'not being able to see the wood for the trees.' Now, obviously, it would be infinitely preferable if the lady could physically be with her family, but being able to see and talk with them, even through a screen, will hopefully make her life easier. The times we are living in are not the best, there's no denying it, but maybe if we looked for even small changes in our lives, we could make life more bearable.
Finally, I would like to wish you all moments of complete happiness, times when you feel totally loved and days, which when they end, you feel you've achieved something which will make your life better. So perhaps you'll conquer that recipe and produce something so delicious, you know you'll make it again, or you'll fix that squeaky floorboard, so you'll be able to raid the fridge at night without waking the whole house. Whatever you choose, it will undoubtedly lift your mood and if that happens, even for just an hour, it will be worthwhile. You see what I mean now? Small things really can make all the difference.
Anyway, time for me to get back to my story, so until the next time....
Take care out there xxx
