Christmas in this ‘new normal’
This was a memorable year for all the wrong reasons
It's that time of year already. It feels like last Christmas was only last week and a decade ago.
For a moment the other day, I was trying to remember what date it was and I thought it was June. Snow flurries were falling outside.
So, Christmas feels like it was here only a week ago. COVID-19 started to affect us in March. That seems like an eternity ago. Funny how our minds work like that.
Back in the spring, we were talking about how we had to get this virus under control so we could be together at Christmas ... and now it's here. Only eight months ago and forever ago at the same time.
This has been the strang, est fall that I can remember. Even the weather doesn't know what time of year it is — 23 C in mid-November is an oddity around here. It was made even more odd when the heat of that day brought people outside to put Christmas decorations up.
I don't remember ever hearing Christmas music on the radio in the second week of November. I was still wearing shorts and short-sleeve shirts, trying to hang on to the last bit of summer.
Schedules and timing have gone out the window with everything else we knew before 2020 so why not wear summer attire while putting up the Christmas decorations.
And if putting Christmas decorations up early is what helps us get through these strange times, I guess there really isn't any harm. Except for the reminder that an entire year has passed already and it was only memorable for all the wrong reasons.
LESSONS LEARNED
We certainly learned a lot in 2020.
We learned how to wash our hands properly and distance ourselves from one another. I learned how to wear a mask without my glasses fogging up. I know I certainly learned how to be resourceful.
I think the most valuable thing we learned is to not take anything for granted. We learned that our jobs, our ability to see our loved ones whenever we want and our way of life can just up and disappear overnight.
Just to show you how out of the loop I am lately, I had no idea a new takeout restaurant had opened in the little building on Plummer Avenue I walk by every morning. The sign, Nonnas Italiano Takeout, certainly caught my attention. I guessed Italian fare, my favourite, and I was right.
I searched for the new eatery online as soon as I got home and was greeted with those mouth-watering photos of pasta and other Italian dishes.
So this is where it starts, this is how we support local. We have a global pandemic, we're told to stay closer to home and now we have something different to try in New Waterford.
Perhaps the next time you are craving pasta, stay in town and support a small local business. I know I can't wait to try it out.
This Christmas is going to be a bit different for everyone. Parades are cancelled, gatherings are limited, there will be no school Christmas concerts and family and friends who usually make the trip home from away at Christmas won't be present.
Many of us head to Halifax to do our Christmas shopping this time of year but with the present circumstances, that won't happen for many and that isn't such a bad thing, really. Here's another one of those opportunities to support local.
CHILDREN ADAPT
I have to say I am surprised by how well the children seem to be taking this whole thing in stride. I think it's proof kids are more understanding than we give them credit for.
Sure they'll miss the parades and concerts but this Christmas is the perfect time to start some new traditions and focus more on the things we now realize are most important.
It's also a great time for us all to reflect on the things we took for granted before this pandemic and hold them closer because things will go back to normal. And when they do, we'll realize that the best thing to come out of 2020 was the valuable lessons we learned about what truly matters.
So Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
As for 2020, I think I speak for many when I say good riddance and here's to hoping 2021 makes 2020 seem like a distant memory.
Andrea MacEachern was raised on the beautiful bay of Lingan. After a decade-long hiatus, she returned to New Waterford where she enjoys writing, walking The Loop and spending time outdoors. Reach out to her if you have an event you would like to share.