I don't want to look back on 2020 and think, "Oh woe is me." Yes, there were some woeful times. Losing the opportunity to finish school with my students at school was just...weird. Not getting to see my grandchild on Easter Sunday was sad. The summer was odd too. No vacation. There have been very few summers in 33 years of marriage that we haven't taken off for somewhere, anywhere. But, not last summer.
Mom's open heart surgery with a quadruple bypass seemed surreal. Although I know it was very real. No sitting in waiting rooms, just waiting on phone calls. I pre-occupied myself by continuing to teach summer school that week. My sister sat outside the hospital in a lawn chair, waiting.
Not celebrating Thanksgiving with my parents was disheartening. And, I missed my Grandma Isabel's dressing recipe that I have tried to make and just can't recreate like my mom can.
The most difficult thing was losing my father-n-law. There. Are. Simply. No. Words.
Teaching school has been a bit of a challenge. Group work, partner work, shoulder reads, simply sitting in a circle and passing around papers for revision is not happening this year, unless it happens through technology. (Germs, Ugh!) And, that's ok, but not my preferred way of doing things. It is preparing them for their future, probably as much as anything we do. Technology based communication is after all their real conversations.
Christmas was the most traditional thing that happened this year. We gathered, we ate, we opened presents, we took home left-overs and it snowed. I even put up more than one tree. Now, if I could prioritize taking those trees down, and stop procrastinating. Maybe tomorrow.
So, what are the "lessons learned?" I mean, that is the title of the blog post. I guess that the lessons are not that earth-shattering. Life goes on and we re-adjust to a different way of getting through the challenges that life throws us. One thing I know, one lesson I have learned is keep those dear to you close, if not in location, at least within a phone call, email or text's reach. Do not save conversations for the next day or week. Dial the number.
