I can’t believe I am writing this but 2020 is now over and 2021 has begun.
This time last year I imagined writing about a very different year. I along with many others felt 2020 was going to be THE year. I was starting a new job as an events coordinator in an incredible venue, I was due to travel to New York and had plans to celebrate some special family occasions including my sisters 21st, mum’s 50th, auntie and uncle’s wedding and my grandparents golden anniversary. However, we all know 2020 had other plans.
2020 was my first year as a graduate and began after a 10 hour shift at the hotel followed by singing old Lang’s Hume in the street with my boyfriend and all of his family! It seems crazy to think this was only a year ago as it feels like a life time that we were all together, singing happily as we held hands and hugged/kissed as we welcomed the new year.
I was very lucky and in January I landed a dream job of events coordinator at the Spinnaker Tower and I couldn’t wait to get started! The year was just beginning and things were starting to turn in the right direction.
The next few weeks were filled with date nights and trips out with family. However, as we all know this quickly came to a halt as we were all placed into lockdown. I began to keep a diary from mid February as this whole thing began and I won’t go into much detail on it all as this could get long. All I remember thinking was this won’t last long will it, we’ve already had fires and flooding the world can’t surely hit us with anything else? But it did and thoughts soon turned to me thinking it could never come to the UK? But it did.
The next few months were life changing and I know that sounds dramatic but they really were! I learnt a lot about myself and experienced some incredible things that I will remember for the rest of my life.
My mum, dad, sister and I spent the next 3-4 months together which with my dad having previously worked in the navy and abroad a lot meant this would be the longest time we have ever spent together as a 4 in my whole life and I am 23 so it’s been a long time haha. Sure we had the odd disagreements but didn’t we all? It was a time of laughs, daily walks and quizzes as we filled the time with things we had always wanted to do but never had the time. Dad built an outdoor kitchen, mum and I caught up on reading, I took up running while she took up cycling and my sister redecorated all the garden gnomes! We were very lucky this happened in the summer months and one of the hottest for a long time so we all got nice and tanned too haha
Every Thursday we took part in Jays Virtual Quiz (which we still do now) and every Friday we each took it in turns to write a family quiz which consisted of 10 families from Portsmouth, Lincoln, Hull, Doncaster! We even got my Nan to join which was so lovely for her as she is on her own and vulnerable so hasn’t really seen anyone all year bless her! It was so lovely seeing all my family and having a good laugh and catch up on what we had been up to that week and who’s tan was the best. I am very greatful we live in a world of so much technology so we were able to do that!
I learnt a lot of new things in 2020 too such as how to bake more, home workouts and how to do different home beauty such as nails and eyebrow waxing. Although I was not going near hair cutting and was glad when the saloons opened again to get that done! As lockdown began to ease, we learnt a new way of life with face masks and social distancing.
I was very lucky to get a new job within the mobile telecommunications industry which although is completely different to what I would like to do, I am so unbelievably greatful to have a job and to be working with a great company. Due to us being key workers, I have continued to work the rest of this year even as we have moved into various tiers so am very lucky to have that security.
2020 marked a big step for me as I moved in with my boyfriend. We were very lucky that the lockdown gave him time to fix up the annex in his garden which when it was safe to do so was finished by professionals. August 2nd I said goodbye to my parents and moved in and it has now been 5 months and I couldn’t be happier! Lockdown was hard like it was for so many couple and I am grateful that we are now closer than we have ever been and I can’t wait to see what the future hold for us.
Sadly 2020 came with its low points as myself, my sister and my mum celebrated our birthdays in lockdown (my sister in the first and my mum and I in the second). My auntie had to postpone her wedding, my grandparents 50th anniversary dinner was cancelled and my trip to New York was cancelled. But the lowest point of 2020 was loosing my grandad.
Now we are in a second lockdown as the new wave has hit bringing with it a new variant. With a vaccine rolling out across the country all we can do is stay inside, stay safe and wait. I haven’t seen my parents since mid December and haven’t hugged them in what feels like forever! I can’t wait for this madness to end so I can see all my family again.
This year was a year like no other. It had its ups and its downs, it’s tears and laughter. But I learnt a lot about myself and grew a great deal as a person. I got to experience some amazing things that took my breath away and still think about how unreal it all was now: The Thursday applause for the NHS which living by the sea was often accompanied by the sound of naval ships sounding their horns, seeing rainbows in every window and watching people like Tom Moore show us nothing is impossible.
2020 was certainly not the year I was expecting but will be one I will remember forever.
So come on 2021 let’s see what you will bring!
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