2020 – A year of realisation that life can be so uncertain and can change any moment. Though we always knew that life can be unpredictable but 2020 came as a rude shock that sometimes there are things beyond one’s control and wherein we will have to learn to adapt to the situation. Also, a year of realisation of our dreams.
The biggest lesson that 2020 taught me
To live in the moment. The present is most important. Do not dwell on the past and do not live for the future. What matters the most is the present.
Most grateful for
For the year 2020 and the time I spent with my family. Having moved to Mumbai seven years back, I did miss my friends and extended family members. But most of the times, you take family for granted and forget them in the hustle of routine life. Being at my hometown since over 8 months now, I made up for the lost time and re build my relationships with them. I also understood the importance of these family members in my life. I think once I am back in Mumbai, I am going to miss them more than the first time I moved far away from them.
Most happy
Because I got to spend so much time with my husband. It was like we are courting again. My husband is a workaholic and we only spent time with each other during weekends. I would rather say we saw each other more only during weekends. I would leave early in the morning to drop my daughter to school and by the time I would be back, he would have left for office. He would come back very late from work because of the long commute and by the time he would be back I would be half asleep.
So this lockdown time was when we watched Netflix together and had midnight snacking sessions chatting about things other than work, my daughter or family.
Sometimes he did get on my nerves because we haven’t spend so much time together in our 16 years of marriage but I am not complaining.
Feeling blessed
Because I had house help everyday of this lockdown. Our help is our family member. His name is Hiralal and he has been staying with us since the past 35 years. Over the years his family grew and also moved to Ahmedabad once his kids old enough to start working. So now along with him, his wife also helps me out with household chores. His son and his family also stays close by so he helps me manage all outdoor chores and all home maintenance related chores. I call him our ‘home manager’. I feel privileged to have their support because I found time to concentrate on work and my leisure activities only because of them.
Excited for new beginnings
2020 is very special because I am now a certified career counsellor. When I had decided to be a stay at home mom, I had planned to go back to my profession as a teacher when my daughter turned five. However, that didn’t happen. Or should I say I didn’t have the confidence to get back to it in a new city. I was not sure of leaving my 5 year old in a day care or with a house help in a city which was unknown to me and where I didn’t have friends.
However, as I got into blogging and I found that I am enjoying it, I totally forgot about the enthusiasm that I found in life while interacting with teenagers.
Last year one of my student from 15 years back got in touch with me on FB and made me realise that they liked me as a teacher not because of my teaching skills but because of my capability to truly comprehend their ambitions, aspirations and interests. She insisted that I should seriously think about going back to doing it. She reminded me about how I used to tell them that I relive my days as a teenager watching them and spending so much time with them. That’s when I decided to pursue career counselling and looked up for courses. This year I was conferred the certification from UCLA- a university of huge repute in the world.
I am now working towards establishing my consultancy and spending most of time of the day building my entrepreneurial venture ‘EduCareer Consultancy’. It gives me great pleasure to share that I could guide a MBBS graduate student with her Admission Essay and Statement of Purpose to secure admission into the Masters course in Clinical Research at the University of California, San Diego.
It’s the first milestone in my re launched career and I am extremely happy it came in a year when it was tough to concentrate on work with the stress of the pandemic looming over our minds all the time.
Thrilled to get back to a healthier lifestyle
When 2020 began, I had stopped working out in the gym as I wanted to concentrate on finishing my course. During lockdown I was not very regular with my workouts and 12 weeks back I decided to change that. I got back to eating healthy food, stopped binge watching and eating during midnights. I also began Heather Robertson’s 12 week workout program. Tomorrow is my last workout and I am back to the pre lockdown healthier self.
Though the pandemic is yet to stay and will not go away with the ending of 2020 but this year has definitely taught us to be better prepared for the worst.
I am looking forward to welcome 2021 more energised and with a more positive mindset. Hope we feel safe again soon to move around freely. Adieu 2020 you have been tough but a great teacher.
This blog post is part of SpeakEasy Blogging Challenge by Dipika and Ruchi.’