Day 1,153 – Finding Joy in the Journey – Wednesday – 12/30/2020
reflecting back on 2020
I have spent the last few days reflecting back on 2020, what I am grateful for from this year and what I’ve learned. One of my biggest lessons is that we can plan all we want though best laid plans are only that – plans. When you can execute on the plans, do so and don’t wait. I’m so glad Steve and I didn’t wait until everything perfect to take our 4-month trip in 2019. Had we waited for 2020, it would not have happened.
The other part of the lesson on plans is that sometimes life throws you lemons or a pandemic that makes you have to stop, embrace what is happening and pivot in a new direction. This year has been about pivots that I may have not taken had the year gone as I originally planned. I am grateful for these pivots as have they have brought new clarity on what’s most important to me in life.
2020 definitely was not as planned though I am still grateful for the past year and the lessons it has taught me. I am excited for 2021, and yes, I’m making plans and writing intentions. I will execute on those plans and if life hands me lemons, then I will take what I have learned from 2020, stop, embrace what’s happening and pivot because sometimes it’s the pivot that gives you a chance to experience something amazing that you may have never planned or thought of.
About “Finding Joy”
And I’m off…. the 16-day adventure begins. The timing of this trip is interesting so I’m naming it “Finding Joy in the Journey.” I’ll be doing one dedicated post each day (at the end of the day or next morning). Since I typically post more than once a day, you’ll find it as a black and white photo. I’ll share the joy of the journey (on the trip or through this season), where I’m finding it and what I’m learning. I hope to inspire myself along the way. And if I can inspire others too, that would be a gift. So let the journey begin…
It was November 2017 and I was ready to head off on a sixteen-day trip. Nine days before leaving, my mom unexpectedly passed away from a heart attack. It shook me to my core. I had always been told the 40’s are the best years of your life. And in a matter of three years, since turning the age of 40, I had gone through a divorce and lost both parents.
I contemplated canceling the trip though I knew my mom would not be happy with that decision. She would want me to continue living my life. My parents did not raise me to sit back and watch life; instead to fully participate in every moment. So I promised my parents to find joy in the journey everyday on my sixteen-day trip and share my experience with others.
Little did I know what “Finding the Joy in the Journey” would turn into when I acted on the prompting to share my experience on a daily basis. It helped me see life differently and my wish is that it will inspire others find joy in their journey.
