With the looming reality of what 2020 has brought to us, and we have all been impacted in some way or another, it’s difficult to truly feel thanks and appreciation. It has definitely been a tough year! Even if you have been fortunate enough to have had little to no impact from the hurricanes, the fires across different continents, the U.K.s withdrawal from the EU, the craziness of the election, the cancellation of the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, the murder hornets, the VIRUS and its economic effects and hardship, and the riots, somewhere deep within us 2020 will leave a lasting impression. So as we start the season of friends and family I thought sharing some reminders of the “good, simple things” would be fitting.
Life
It seems pretty basic, but in stating the obvious, not everyone has the chance to wake up and live another day. The daily stresses of existence and the drive to continue in times of uncertainty can weigh us all down, but waking up each morning to strive to be better than the day before is something that should lift us and give us strength to push forward.
Love and kindness of others
If there is one thing that has been constant in 2020 it is change. This year has certainly opened my eyes and while we see so many headlines of the terrible things that have happened this year behind what is being broadcast, there are great things rising. I have seen more people reaching out to help others than I have ever experienced. The schools are organizing more efforts than ever to help teachers (sending home projects for parents to help out with for classroom use, supplies and food drives to help families within the schools, even just in the neighborhood (offerings of people to shop for others that can’t afford it or need to quarantine), social media posts of individuals just willing to help random strangers if they need to feed their families, fund-raising efforts to support school programs that were underfunded due to the PPE needs to keep the schools going, parents working together to support group, at-home learning while they are figuring out how to work remotely themselves. Behind the scenes, if we take a closer look, 2020 has brought out more caring for one another.
Nature and all of her beauty
It may sound a bit quirky, but when I have a rough day you can often find me trying to locate a section grass so I can take my shoes off and “earth.” Earthing or grounding is making contact with the Earth’s surface electrons; transferring energy from the ground into the body. While I can not speak to the scientific data supporting the actual effects of earthing, I do know that taking a minute or two in nature revives my senses and clears my mind to reset on my path, whatever level of greatness or lack there of! You can check out studies on earthing here at the US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health.
Laughter
“The best medicine” – HelpGuide.org has listed out some of the ways that support why laughter is good for our health. I love to giggle, who doesn’t? I will say that my laughing can become so outrageous at times that its embarrassing. Once it starts it doesn’t stop and at this point in time, my husband has coined me with the nickname of “Chuckles.” “Oh boy, Chuckles is here!” I always feel better after a laugh, especially when its a shared laugh and everyone’s eyes tear up. It’s reported that laughter can release stress and tension for up to 45 minutes after, the decrease in stress hormones boosts the body’s immune system, overall benefits to mental health and a really good laugh session can actually burn calories. I recommend finding a couple of good comedies to watch this Thanksgiving.
Ability to Learn
Whether it’s as simple as learning to read for the first time or re-learning how to brush your teeth again, education and the ability to learn gives us confidence and is crucial in our overall growth. Learning also provides us with the ability to acclimate and 2020 has pushed us into uncharted territories. We have had to learn a new way of survival. New jobs, no jobs, new workspace, new schooling applications, A Completely New Norm. Just take a minute and think of all that you learn on a daily basis and the better you are for being able to.
And for those that find simple pleasure in football, you will be able to kick back and find thanks that the season continues! We have 3 Games on Thanksgiving; brunch, dinner and pie: Matthew Stafford and the Detroit Lions will be contending with Deshaun Watson and the Texans (12:30 pm ET CBS), The Cowboys will be avenging the 22 point loss they suffered to Washington (4:30 pm ET Fox) and The Ravens are set to battle the Steelers in the AFC North matchup (8:20 pm ET NBC).
We at Libertate Insurance, are looking forward to Thanksgiving and we are going to do our best to spend it in the most joyous and positive way possible. We hope that you are able to do the same.
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