And Time is Still Marching On... (I'll give anyone a prize if you know what I'm quoting in the title and the first line of this blog post).
Here it is another new year. The month of January has come and gone. Sometimes it surprises me how fast time seems to go. Sometimes the days seem to go by so slow but then the weeks go by so fast.
It's been over three years since Covid-19 was introduced to the world.
It's been thirteen years since I graduated from university.
It's been almost seven months since my dad died.
It's been eighteen years since I entered the MTC to begin my mission.
It's been a year since I lost my job.
It's been twelve years since I came back from teaching English in Taiwan.
It's been about five months since I drove back to Virginia from Utah.
Although some of the things I mentioned happened a long time ago and some not so long ago, they don't seem like they happened that long ago.
It's still crazy to me what it was like at the beginning and in the thick of the pandemic.
Playing at a park was not allowed
Wearing masks if we went anywhere outside of our homes was highly encouraged
One way aisles at grocery stores
Eating inside a restaurant was not allowed and curbside pickup became a big thing
Those who could, started working from home
Schools were closed and teachers and parents were trying to figure out how to continue school online from home
Movie theaters and hair salons (anything deemed non-essential) were closed
At this time all of these things were normal!
When finding toilet paper in stock at the store was a miracle! This was three years ago. Not that long ago, but seriously how has it already been three years since the beginning?!
I do realize we are still in the midst of the pandemic but things aren't as crazy as they were at the beginning. A lot of people are vaccinated, masks are optional now, schools are open fully again, movie theaters and hair salons are open again. The strains of Covid-19 now are not as deadly.
I graduated from university thirteen years ago. I enjoyed my years at university! I learned a lot and I made some good friends. But how could that be thirteen years ago?! It makes me feel old sometimes. ;)
My dad died almost seven months ago. It does not seem like it's been that long. I think about him and miss him everyday.
This picture is from 2018 when my dad and mom and sister, H, and I went on a Caribbean cruise.
I always feel kind of old when I say that I returned from my mission 16-1/2 years ago. How the heck did that happen?!
A desk I had set up to work from home during the pandemic before I lost my job a year ago.
I loved living in Taiwan and had a great time there! I still think about my experiences there everyday and it's so weird how long ago it was now.
The picture above is when the parents of two of our students invited us teachers to go on a weekend trip with them. It was a fun and adventurous little trip!
This was five months ago, so crazy! My sister, H, helped me drive part of my trip back to Virginia.
It was a tradition on road trips growing up to stop at Little America on I-80 to get ice cream cones. Of course, H, and I had to stop at Little America to get ice cream cones on our way to TN. :)
My brother, Matt, helped me drive the rest of the way on my trip back to Virginia.
Matt suggested we stop at Buc-ee's to fill up on gas and get food. I had never been to one before but apparently it's a big thing in the states that actually have Buc-ee's.
As we go through life good and bad things happen to us. And as time keeps marching on, I hope we have mostly happy moments to reminisce on.
