That’s a wrap. Thanks 2021

I haven’t written much lately. I have been lacking hutzpah. I think I have been suffering from Pandemic exhaustion. Is that a thing? I feel like it is. How are you feeling? This last couple of years has taken its toll hasn’t it? I want to say ‘enough already!’

Remember when we got to New Year’s Eve in 2020 with all of us looking forward to everything going back to normal? We desperately wanted things to be different (aka Covid to vanish) in 2021. We all know how that turned out.

This year I decided I would do something creative, despite how It felt to be in lockdown again. I signed up for online writing courses, did creative writing master classes, online drawing courses. I even joined a one hundred day drawing challenge on Insta; I made it to day fifty-six and then fizzled out. I was aiming for thirty days so I was happy with that.

In my experience, gratitude makes a huge difference to my thinking. It’s easy to let ourselves get into a negative spiral, and end up at the bottom of a very dark hole where slimy characters like self criticism and doubt hang out.

I think the end of the year is the perfect time to look back on what we have learned and maybe find some things to be thankful for. New Year’s resolutions can put too much pressure on us. We start well and then often quit and disappoint ourselves.

I encourage you to try something different. If you have been feeling pandemic exhaustion and need to lift your spirits, why not take some time to make a list of all the good things you learnt in 2021?

Here’s a few of the things I learnt this year.

I can only ever be me, and that is enough.

God, (the Divine, the energy that runs through all things,) is always with me no matter what.

Grand-mothering is more about being than doing.

Friends are like gossamer, so go gently and be kind.

There is much more for me to learn.

Hope heals my heart when I despair.

Thankfulness is the antidote for most things.

Parenting constantly changes no matter how old your children are.

Drawing absorbs me regardless of the outcome.

Writing is as necessary for me as breathing.

I was going to explain each point, but I’ve decided I would rather leave time for you to make your own list and start 2022 with a thankful heart.

Thank you for reading and all the best in 2022, for you, and for those you love.