Some of us are at the place we dreamed about: staying home with time on our hands, but, of course, not quite in the manner it came about. With COVID came devastations and disappointments during the continuation of the political mess. I never have absolutely, totally, wasted so much time in the last year, but I have had surges of energy to do things I’ve finally needed doing. The following is a look back on 2020 and hopes for 2021.

(Before I begin, though, I must say I am not overlooking those who continue to be challenged beyond belief on their jobs taking care of people affected with COVID. May God continue to give them strength and compassion in their long, unending hours of work.)

In this past year, I’ve never baked so many cookies (to give away), worked so many puzzles, watched enough TV (mostly Christian, Turner Classics and Hallmark movies), researched so much in order to write my columns, played with my dog so much that she is training me to know what she wants, read so many books, made so many greeting cards to give away (over 500), ordered so much online, nor have I given away as many of my much-loved books as I have in this past year. Well... when I look over that list, I guess my time hasn’t been totally wasted, after all.

With all this extra time, I’ve recently been going through hundreds and hundreds of old photos, taken from old deteriorating scrapbooks. They cause me to do a lot of reminiscing. Beginning in about the 7¹r¹ grade, I began dreaming about career choices. I considered becoming a taxidermist, fashion designer, an artist, fabric designer, missionary, dog kennel owner, or even a nun (even though I wasn’t a Catholic) or join the Peace Corps. However, I gave up those aspirations and married, never thinking one day I’d have a dream job as a college English professor.

When going through my old stuff, I hate to say I still have unfinished projects that I could have but haven’t touched this past year. I have a stack of poetry I still haven’t tweaked for publishing at least a chapbook. I have several throws with quilt batting sandwiched between layers of fabric, ready to be tied and hemmed and to be given away. Acrylic paints and watercolor supplies wait for me to dabble on prestretched canvases. Of that, my first attempt lasted 20 minutes. I haven’t touched them again in years.

Also, there are new blank books waiting for me to create pencil sketches and jot down new lines of poetry. A large bottle of decoupage glue, a large collection of clip art (from Amazon), hundreds of clipped magazine pictures, and old newspapers all wait for me to create decoupage bowls, making altered old books, and posters. A rough draft of a book on how to teach children’s Bible classes still waits on my attempt to prepare for publishing. I’m not even going to mention how many unread books still wait for me in my library....Maybe unfinished projects keep reminding me there are still things to do, so when bored, I can’t say I have nothing to do since I’m retired.

While many of you are staying home more, I hope you are doing better than I am and making the most of it. If you have family still at home, I pray the older ones are being patient and kind with the younger ones who can’t comprehend the situation. If you think it’s hard being housed up with your family for so long, just imagine what it’s like for those who live alone...

So, in reminiscing 2020’s time and activities, even if things seem to start turning back to some kind of “normal” this new year, I’m not sure it will ever be the same. Maybe it shouldn’t be because of how we’ve been taking so much for granted: Our church. People. Things. Our time. Our freedom to do whatever we wanted, whenever we wanted, and wherever we wanted. It seems a good time to think about how we spend our time and re-prioritize every area of our lives. Let’s be more thankful, knowing how quickly our privileges can be taken away. Hopefully, it won’t be long until we can continue with needed activities and socializing with others. Let’s consider being a blessing and having peace to share in 2021.