In retrospect, we have a lot to be thankful for in 2021 despite all the misery, twists, and turns that Covid inflicted on us. We've all had to suffer some time away from family and friends, we suffered having our churches closed for a period of time and then reopened with restrictions and rules that were imposed on us, like no singing in the congregation and only one person allowed to sing away from the people. Having to register our names and contact information upon entering the church. Funerals services were not allowed, making it difficult to show our support to bereaved families, visiting sick family members and friends in the hospital was not allowed and many businesses have had to close while Amazon sales online soared. We've had to forgo our fundraising Spring and Fall suppers and caterings, Christmas parties, many organizations have had to suspend their meetings and fundraising.
Even shopping for groceries became some kind of maze we had to learn to navigate. A few idiots couldn't follow the arrows on the floor to the dismay of others who gave them the evil eye, or the ones who wore their masks below the nose. Apparently, they never went to health classes and don't know that the nose is part of the respiratory system.
One good thing that came out of this isolation is that we discovered how efficient meeting by Zoom has been. It has been so much more efficient than meeting in small groups and I've made so many amazing like-minded friends across Canada, the USA, and as far away as Singapore and Bali.
Health care is now overburdened with the shortage of doctors and nurses and hospitals running at overflow capacity. Covid is hogging the news and the world has gone bonkers. Still, there are some silver linings in all of this. People are now washing their hands more often and covering their mouths and colds and regular flu have been less frequent. School children have had to resort to online classes and people have had to work from home with a lot of adjustments. One sad side effect of Covid restriction is that drug and alcohol abuse have risen and also family violence and spousal abuse which is so unfortunate.
Personally, we have had our share of losses and gains. On January 4th, 2021 we lost a good mechanic employee and friend to Leukemia and several close friends and acquaintances, two nephews lost their battle with cancer, and a third nephew died after complications with diabetes. We quietly celebrated our 55th wedding anniversary. We were spared a spring flood in 2021 and I'm so grateful for this after suffering two devastating floods two years in a row.
In the spring, we got an abundance of spring flowers and fiddleheads. I shredded a mountain of office papers but still, another mountain needs to be shredded. I conquered a beautiful pattern for a baby blanket after many, many attempts.
Madison, my brother's grandaughter went missing in May on her way to school early in the morning and was murdered by a pedophile. Her body has still not been found although, they have found her cell phone at the bottom of a lake, some of her clothing, and her blood in the back of the truck. My brother, her grandfather, was paralyzing slowly and needed a walker to get around until he was totally paralyzed from a huge brain tumor. He is now recuperating in the hospital in his hometown after very serious brain surgery and many serious setbacks. He is our Christmas Miracle.
I successfully grew sweet potatoes in our short season for the first time, and also successfully grew sweet corn and used cotton bags to protect the cobs from birds and worms. I had a bumper crop of rhubarbs, green beans, carrots, peas, potatoes and tomatoes, and many other veggies. I made the best-bottled salsa from a recipe from Mennonite Girls Can Cook, and plenty of it. I went picking apples twice in the country and bottled dehydrated apples. Made tons of assorted pickles, jam, and jelly and sold a lot to raise funds for the church.
My son has been alcohol-free for over 4 months and is doing very well. We lost our good family doctor and now have joined the rank of people without family doctors. I'm sure I'm forgetting some important events but 2021, sure has had its up and down and for the record, there are still two more days to go.
I successfully went through a 21 day Daniel fast and gain spiritual peace and graces for which I'm very grateful. Being away from social media has freed a huge amount of time that I used for prayer and reflection and got things done around the house.
Since Covid started, I haven't had either any colds or flu and I hope I can keep it up but my little great-granddaughter visited a few days ago and she had a runny nose. I'm keeping my fingers crossed but I suspect it won't do any good. So far, I've survived 2021, like I said, there are still 2 more days left.
Thanks for visiting and leaving a comment and keep thinking positive, it's better for your health.
Hugs,
Julia
