2020 began feeling like any other year…and then it went….well, you know how it went. You know how when you’re little and a day or a week feels like it takes forever? This year felt more like that to me.
There was also a lot of change, day to day, week to week. While I rarely left my neighborhood, there was so much physically going on in the country and the world. The pandemic and varying degrees of lockdown and protests and the election and….you know, you can probably read a more succinct summary of what happened that was considered newsworthy this year. Like here. And here. Here’s some of NPR’s global stories from 2020 that are not about the pandemic.
There were the weeks of transition for me where all my classes shifted online in March — both the one I was taking and the one I was doing supplemental instruction sessions for — and that was a lot to deal with all at once. And then experimenting with teaching Nia online…I still feel that I’m in the process of learning what works best as far as the technology goes.
There were moments where I wondered what I would have thought last January had someone told me how this year would unfold. Also, have you seen Julie Nolke’s YouTube shorts about talking to her past self about the pandemic? Four episodes total and worth watching. Start with the first episode here.
The true highlight of this year for us personally was getting our dog from a local dog rescue organization. He has brought joy and laughter (and walks outside!) to our lives at a time when we really needed it. He’s willful and zany and sweet and goofy…and totally the right dog for us.

See all the cuteness? He’s really great.
I tend to get annoyed by taglines about “How to make 2021 your year!” or other similar statements. Granted, I’ve never been much of a fan of resolutions or high doses of ultra-positive affirmations, particularly not in the past few years. And then looking at the silver linings of 2020…they are there, especially on an immediate personal level. But they are also there with a lot of miserable and awful stuff. I had quite a few moments of breaking down and grieving and being frustrated and feeling helpless this year. I miss my family. I miss New Mexico. I want…well, I want things to be different than they are. But I also expect that it will take a while for life to change to something resembling the normality of the past, and I don’t have an expectation for a timeline on that.
So I will end with this: I am grateful that my family and I are currently healthy. I am grateful to have work that I enjoy and tentative plans for the future. I am grateful for regular dance and monthly hikes. I am grateful for the companionship and love of my husband and our relationship; we are truly a team even when times aren’t easy. I hope this next year will have more highlights than this one, both personally and on a global level. My hope is to take one day at a time, to see as clearly as I can…and hope. I can’t always hope for the best, but I can hope for better.
So, goodbye 2020. Welcome, 2021! Happy New Year!