The Things In-Between

After 2020, the burn out is real. I know that I'm not alone in having worked myself to the bone just to survive what has been a year for the record books. It's been a year of the unknown.

One of the things that I learned at the end of the year is that it's okay to take a breather. I'm bringing that with me into 2021.

I was always taught to never let up, to never settle, to never stop moving. It's served me well through the years. Even in 2020 while the world was on fire and a virus swept the globe, I was in perpetual motion.

Then we got the call that my uncle had passed away suddenly. In the middle of the year, the middle of a pandemic, everything seemed to freeze. Family that we haven't seen in years were able to come in for a socially distanced funeral as we said goodbye to one of the best men I'd ever known.

Sitting on an uncomfortable chair in a cold funeral home in the middle of the summer, I learned what it meant to press pause. I looked at the collage of photos that were on the board of moments in his life, the happiness and joy that came through it all.

That's all it took. A moment in the middle of everything, a brief exhale of stress.

My uncle doesn't get a moment to smell the roses anymore. He doesn't get a moment to call up his brother, my dad, and just ask how he's doing. He doesn't get to put on his favorite movie and eat his favorite food. He doesn't get to watch his favorite football team—Geaux Saints!—almost make it to the Super Bowl again.

Many of us lost people this year, be it to the virus or just natural causes like with my uncle. Many people don't get these chances anymore.

So we should do it for them.

Stop and take a breath. Breathe in. Breathe out.

Just one moment. That's all it takes some times. A moment when everything goes quiet, everything goes still. Sometimes all it takes is a break to show us that we're not broken.

In the midst of everything, I took on more responsibilities at work. I didn't want to take them on and I'm not being compensated for the extra work I do, but it had to be done. These added responsibilities have given me more stress than I know what to do with.

Now when I'm struggling under the stress of work or the stress of just living these days, I'm reminded that I can take a breath. Not only can I, but I deserve it.

The world won't stop spinning if I take a long bubble bath. The company won't go bankrupt if I take a break to clear my head. My family won't disappear if I don't sign on to Facebook for a while.

2020 had so many things happen in quick succession that it felt like we'd never get a break. The thing is that we pretend 2021 is something new when really it's just another day in a long chain of them.

I've never been one for resolutions. If I want to change something, why should I wait until the beginning of a year? Why can't I just pick any day to start something new?

This year I finally see the appeal. It's not just because it's a new year. The new year gives us the ability to make these resolutions, a starting point to help make a goal. It's a way to track our progress, to turn over that elusive new leaf.

So this year, I'm going to take those moments as they come. I'm going to press pause when I need to. I'm going to embrace the little things and support myself the best way I can. I'm going to encourage healthy relationships. I'm going to reach out when I need help.

I'm going to remember the people we've lost along the way. I'm going to celebrate and goof off and enjoy this new year.

Breathe in, breathe out. Once more into the unknown.