2021 is nearly here and all over on social media, the news, the people I talk to, I keep hearing the idea that we want 2020 gone and forgotten. We want to draw a line under it and pretend it never happened. In many ways, I completely get it. Its been a hard year. I've missed my family, seeing my nephews and nieces grow, I've had friends and family ill and in hospital or other friends stranded around the country.
But in telling the story of our lives, we can't gloss over a year. Every story will have its dark moments, its what makes the triumphs shine brighter (there is a Lord of the Rings quote here somewhere!) Don't wipe out the hard times, they make us who we are, they are part of our story.
In terms of grief, it is generally understood that it is harder to grieve a difficult relationship. Happier memories are easier to look back on because they make us smile and laugh together, we don't like to think about the unhappy ones which makes them harder to process and we can become 'stuck' there.
Maybe then, it is important to find the happiness in this last year, the times we came together, the things we achieved. Yesterday we had a talk with the kids, remembering the fun things which we managed; Daddy building in the garden, doing lessons at home, finding new paths in the woods. We also talked about the things we missed; seeing our family, being able to go to church and dance to the music. We talked about the things we hope we will be able to do this next year and wrote them down. All these things are part of our story and journey together. They make us who we are.
May you find the celebration in your story of the year gone past and the hope of the year to come.
Fran
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