2020 will be taught on history lessons, that’s for sure. But now – it’s about to come to an end. I remember how I welcomed 2020 at the new year’s eve party at my friends, and how outstanding it was. It seems very distant now, but I can recall so many resolutions and plans and scheduling my yearly calendar. The most crucial milestone I haven’t planned before was moving my beauty salon to a new place. It involved a lot of stress, but damn it – it was worth it. This is how I entered 2020, full of hope and thoughts that it will be a magic year.
But the reality turned out to be completely different. Nobody saw that coming. We couldn’t predict the virus outbreak that will literally stop the world. It’s so hard to think of how many lives the COVID-19 has taken away, how many job losses, or wiped out businesses.
Coping with the pandemic wasn’t easy for anyone. Right now, I can say that I managed to survive. And that I did this, thanks to you – my dear customers. From the bottom of my heart, I’d like to thank you – for your support, for your kind words, for being with me. Thank you for your trust, because of which I can still look after your skin and take care of your problems. My work means a lot to me, and I’m grateful I can perform it.
The first lockdown
We survived two pandemic lockdowns. The first one was an earthquake. All of a sudden, we couldn’t go to work, do what we used to do after work, meet with our friends, and so on. We had to adapt at speed to wearing face masks, gloves, and using disinfectants.
The first lockdown was incredibly long – for me, it lasted over three months. But hey – we must admit – we’ve had lovely weather in Galway back then, and that helped us a lot to get through this turbulent time.
It was striking that the world suddenly slowed down. I can recall appreciating the blue sky and news from all over the globe, that wild animals appeared in places they hadn’t been seen before, including large cities.
Even the satellites have registered a significant decrease in air pollution in China. It was a moment to think about how badly civilization affects the natural environment. Obviously, diseases and viruses are not a way to go, but this pandemic exposed how much stopping factories, calling off flights and reducing traffic can make a difference for our planet.
What’s more, I noticed that people started to look after themselves more. With the gyms and fitness clubs shut down, they began to be super active in sports performed outside. People who were used to being physically active beforehand and those who have been taking little or no exercise switched to be working out frequently.
Moreover, the slower pace of life and more spare time we’ve gained due to the pandemic helped us know our bodies better and learn how to take care of them. Personally, I ruled gluten out of my diet because I’ve learned to read the signals my body has been sending me. Signals I couldn’t or refused to recognize before.
The second lockdown
The second lockdown was more severe because it hit us during wintertime. Shorter days, stronger winds, rains, and storms – that’s not an excellent background to remain optimistic. Many of you have acknowledged that it was way more challenging to handle staying at home when it’s dark and grim outside most of the time.
It was tough for me, considering that a new real estate is being built right across the street, and every day I had to deal with the noise caused by heavy machinery.
On top of that, there’s this uncertainty issue. We all feel clueless about a pandemic situation and where it will take us from here, concerning both our professional and private lives.
How did I manage to keep a positive vibe?
Keeping in mind that I had to close my premises for five long months during this year, online training sessions and professional courses have given me that power. So far, I have completed over 100 of those, and I’m still hungry for more!
What is so great about those online training sessions is that I can do them with my trade colleagues from all over Ireland, UK, or Poland. And what’s mainly drives me to excel is that we can share and confront our thoughts, ideas during and after those online get-togethers.
It’s fantastic that the cosmetics industry came out with this substantial educational online offer. Thanks to learning new skills from home, I met a few important people who share their knowledge with me in a wonderful way. Online education gives me new ideas to develop my beauty salon to launch new products and services. And so you know – the changes are already in play
What can I share with you?
The most exciting part of acquiring new knowledge is to make you benefit from it. I will make the most of it for you to know how crucial is your skin – what you can do to help it, and how to prevent possible damages.
If you treat your skin with respect and the love it deserves, it will undoubtedly pay you back with a healthy look and beauty.
A healthy diet paired with proper and regular care can do miracles. It would help if you didn’t treat it with new preparations on and on, because they will only irritate it.
Time to stop and think
When it comes to learning some lessons from lockdowns, each of us can identify both positive and negative outcomes of the pandemic. There is no point in pretending that there are no downsides. All those things taken away from us cause stress, sadness, a feeling of isolation, or even depression. Not to mention being scared of getting infected, informational chaos in media, or being concerned about the elders and the vulnerable ones.
And now – we have Christmas just about to start. Malls and stores are open again, ready to welcome crowds. We can see people who got used to living in the pandemic times, respecting procedures. On the other hand – it’s easy to notice how many people are tired of the situation and being careful all the time.
It seems like the crazy consumption is back with all the traffic, queues, full shopping trolleys, and all that rush – to be right on time with everything and to make this Christmas so perfect and glamorous like Instagram lifestyle photos. The question is – is it really worth it to stress ourselves even more during a year so filled with stress?
Not everything has to be perfect
Does everything really have to shine like a diamond? I don’t think so. We don’t have to buy new Christmas decorations when those we purchased last year still look just fine We don’t have to buy preposterous amounts of food, since shops will be open again in only a few days.
Let’s slow down. Enjoy the moment. Let’s cherish the idea that Christmas is coming. It’s not going to be the same as a year or two ago. But still – it’s Christmas. Perhaps we will not meet with all our family, but we can always meet them online. Let’s try to make this time special. Time to celebrate, unwind, and regenerate.
It’s also this time of the year when it’s worth to think about – not only about the relatives – but also people we know from our neighborhood, who might be lonely or need our help because they’re too old to support themselves.
2021 – how is it going to be?
2021 is just around the corner. Even though the government just announced a third lockdown, and most likely, the upcoming months are not going to be easy, I believe it will be a better year.
To start it well, let’s make the most of this Christmas and end-of-year time to fully recover, blow up stress, leave the anger and frustrations behind. Let’s recharge our batteries with positive energy.
Try to get back to do some things that you couldn’t find time for so far. If you were planning to read some books that have been waiting on the shelves – do it. If you wanted to watch a movie with your closest – do it. If you find pleasure in cooking or housekeeping – go ahead! If you miss dancing, dance – even at home! Let’s find this type of activity that will help you to rejuvenate.
What can do the trick? Going for a walk, trying out meditation, or yoga.
Final words
It’s entirely up to us how we survive the pandemic. If we stay in good physical and psychological shape, lead an active and balanced lifestyle, maintain a healthy diet (which can be difficult during Christmas, but we can try!), we will be already ahead to come out of the pandemic victoriously. We need to take care of ourselves because no one else is going to do that for us.
Most people have some New Year’s resolutions, no matter the scale. I know mine What are yours? Please share them with me in the comments!
All in – I wish you Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year – may it be a better one!
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