Phew…what a year, right! This time last year I was chilling by an infinity pool overlooking the Caribbean ocean. I had a lovely little cocktail in hand, ginger beer and apple crown, not my usual but my Sister-In-Love made it for me and it totally hit the spot, and by the way, really yummy in case this Thanksgiving requires a bit of libations to get through it. I was watching my kids laugh and swim with the warm St. Thomas USVI sun glistening all over their beautifully tanned bodies. I watched my husband playing some sort of chase game in the pool with the kids and the level of stress, yeah, non-existent.
This year, well…it is quite a bit different for this Thanksgiving Holiday. We are quarantining, just us four which means only a virtual hug from my extended family and friends. Quite a bit colder here in Chicago, so no bikinis for this girl this year. And of course, we have the what seems like never ending circle of stress surrounding all of us.
Stress that even requires your subconscious to take a deep breath. COVID is on a level we have not seen before and with no end in sight. Doctors are pleading on the news again, and exhausted nurses are posting sad images and stories of sorrow, pain and death on Facebook. Case numbers are skyrocketing. And we still have this political transition or lack thereof going on which is not helping.
Yes, 2020 friggin sucks. Like it sucks bad people. But I honestly do not have to dig all that deep to find so many things in life, even in 2020 that I am so grateful for. For starters, I am alive, when over one million three hundred and fifty thousand lives have been lost to COVID globally this year. With over two hundred and fifty thousand of that just here in the states. To put that into perspective, based on the Dept. of Veteran Affairs, that is more deaths of American citizens than WWI, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and Dessert Storm. And if we keep trending, we will surpass the American Civil War here shortly.
So, yes, I am so very thankful that I am currently breathing and not via the help of a ventilator or oxygen tank. My children are alive and well. They are healthy, vibrant, home and still able to continue their learning remotely. My husband is alive and well, has a great job and loves me in a way no one ever has before and he still does after 15 years together. Our home is beautiful, warm, and an amazing shelter for my family especially during this crazy year when we have been home more than ten years combined. My family is clothed, and to be quite honest with far too many options to choose from. We are well fed; whole foods and Costco delivery has assured us of this.
I have gotten closer to some really important people in my life even though there are many miles between us. Shit, I started this blog this year, and I am so very thankful and grateful for that and for all of you and your support.
Here’s the thing, in a sea of rotting pumpkins that is 2020, there is still a golden pumpkin or two to be found, still thriving and giving all the goods. So, this Thanksgiving, try to remember, stress will eat you alive, but joy and a grateful heart can heal. Laughter can lift spirits and remind us of all the things we are thankful for.
So instead of the tan lines this year, I’ll be working diligently on my laugh lines. Yes, I’ll probably still have a cocktail in hand, and I will be watching my beautiful family laugh and play, but most importantly, I will be reminded just how fortunate I am, just how much I have in 2020, and just how thankful I truly am. So, I’ll be counting my golden pumpkins this Thanksgiving, one after the other. Will you?
Happy Thanksgiving my little nesters!
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