I’ve been seeing a lot of posts on social media about 2020 and “good riddance” or “wth was that about”?

Although I haven’t enjoyed all of the social isolation; nor the ugliness and shadow we were all faced to deal with within ourselves and observed in others; nor the economic impact this shutdown and continued responses to curtail the spread of COVID-19 has wreaked upon the livelihoods of friends, family, and neighbors; nor the suffering and struggle those who came down with COVID-19 went through; nor the sadness, grief, and pain those who lost their battle with COVID-19 went through — many isolated and alone without family in the hospital and the grief their loved ones left to mourn them had to go through — many not able to gather together in person with their larger family and clan to celebrate the life of their loved one who died of COVID-19, 2020 will always be a special year for me.

2020 afforded me the opportunity to go within and deepen my spiritual life anew. The awe and wonder of looking up at the night sky fed my soul as the anxiety and stress of the uncertain days that lay ahead tried to settle within as I was sent home in March to work from home.

Every day from that day on to today, gave me a greater appreciation and love for my husband. I’ve told him on more than one occasion since social isolation directives from our governor and workplace were put into place, “If I had to be sent into isolation for a pandemic, I am so I am isolating with you. Can you imagine how being stuck in the same house for extended periods without much socializing outside of the house with someone you didn’t love or who didn’t nurture and affirm and support you would be?”

2020 has taught me to be more compassionate and aware despite a cultural influence here in the United States to do the opposite. My heart has ached with each small business I have seen go out of business in our rural area impacted by the shutdown. My heart ached with each friend, acquaintance, public figure and family member I learned or heard had come down with COVID-19. My heart went out to each person I learned had died from COVID-19 and all their family members they left behind. The anonymity of numbers kept being chipped away as the casualties began to have names and faces of people I knew growing up, or people I know who have lost family members directly to COVID-19.

I have been blessed and have enjoyed the pace of life that has allowed me to observe Saturn and Jupiter each night as I walked down to the barns in the early evening watching them slowly converge together and drift away before I set out to do evening chores and bring the horses in.

I’ve enjoyed the pace of life that made me aware that last year Orion and the Pleiades were more horizontally aligned in the night sky with Orion towards the left and the Pleiades to the right and how this year they appear to be more vertically aligned with Orion down below and the Pleiades up above.

I’ve enjoyed the pace of life that allowed me to have a colt foaled on our farm and watch him grow and interact with his mother.

I’ve enjoyed spending more time at home on the little acreage we have and appreciating it’s wonders. It’s rather ironic we all work so heart and spend a large portion of our life away from the place we call home in order to have a home and often spend our free time outside of work away from home pursuing other interests. I’ve always thought our little acreage is a slice of heaven and 2020 has taught me to be more appreciative of that.

So, in the last hours of 2020 I have to look back and realize 2020 has not been a total wash out for me. I hope I can keep the awareness and knowledge I’ve gained in 2020 to help shape all the New Years ahead 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024….

May we all take the awareness and growth gained from 2020 and do our part to make all the New Years ahead better and better and better.