Grateful – Mummy To Twins Plus One

Reflections on 2020

2020 has been a test for everyone.

Every time I turn on the TV every station says, “It’s a year like no other” and “We are all in this together” This is nice to know but I am rather over hearing these phrases.

Oh deer what a year! We can all agree 2020 wasn’t a great year.

My 2020 started when we were in the midst of constant bushfires and we watched the fires near me app more than our television. The fires in the Blue Mountains had actually started in about September or possibly earlier in 2019 so we had about five months of constant fires, sirens, smoke and living with a go bag packed just in case.

When the winds changed near the end of 2019 the residents of the city of Sydney were whinging about having smoke in there backyard and having the constant smell of smoke. I know it was hard for them, but have a thought for us and others that were living this every day for months on end. No one seemed to worry if we had smoke where we lived but as soon as it blows into someone’s fancy penthouse or apartment it is national news story. Oh well there is my whinge about that issue.

Just before Christmas 2019 we were planning on visiting family but decided to leave a day earlier as they were closing the road going to Sydney and had already closed the road to Mudgee and beyond. Yep, where I live there is one road in and one road out… so if they are closed and the emergency department says ti is to late to leave you are stuck with no where to go. We thought it best to go while the road was still open and as we have 3 young children cannot just make quick decisions for all. We were lucky our place wasn’t burnt down and still in one piece, however there were burnt leaves that were still on fire flying into our yard, black ash over everything and heavy smoke and a red fire sun on our return in 2020.

Fireworks has been cancelled nearly everywhere. Sydney cancelled the 9pm fireworks and has told people to watch on the TV for the 12pm fireworks.

We thought that if we could only just get through the fires we would all be okay. Have the public holidays in January, get jobs and move on from there.

The fires were not the only thing that happened to our local community. We had floods and weeks and weeks of heavy rain that caused a lot of damage. Again, we were lucky to escape this damage on our property but we knew others that didn’t have such luck. Many had trees come down on roofs and one had a tree land on a car (the only plus here was that they were not in it at the time).

Many job applications later and nothing from anyone. It was all okay we thought, it is just the fact that it is just after the holidays. More job applications and many people who finally spoke to us said they were putting jobs on hold. At the time we were not sure why, but thought that it might be due to budgets.

Fast forward to March 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic had hit Australia, we were on the brink of a full shutdown, border closures, and schools telling parents that if you were not an essential worker then you will need to home school your child or children. We were not considered essential workers and this then meant that all three kids were home with us doing school work all the while I was trying to do some paid work. This as you imagine was very hard.

Homeschooling only lasted for about four months, I do know that other countries have had nearly a whole year of having kids at home learning. I am very happy that we didn’t have longer with all three kids at home, it was very testing to say the least….many swear words and more were uttered due to the horrible circumstances.

With the second wave that happened in Melbourne and Sydney suddenly facing more infctions everywhere, well it seems everywhere but it has been a little over a hundred new infections currently. Although it seems low the powers that be have cracked down hard due to the fact that the virus can spread quickly and infect many in a short space of time.

I was hoping that on the last day of the year that we would be in a better position, however, borders are closed to everyone from New South Wales, wearing masks is now said should be mandatory and we need to make sure to only have 5 people visit our home which includes kids and adults.

I’m very grateful to have a contract that is bringing money into the household and has made Christmas and life a little bit easier. It is nice to be working again in the corporate world, although I do miss some fun things with the kids. In a year where we desperately needed someone to work I have taken on that role to give us all a helping hand.

My relatives in the UK are having a much harder time. A full shutdown is happening and a mutation of the virus is so much more infectious. More people are in hospital and intensive care since April, and thousands and thousands are getting infected each day and sadly dying. Over 40,000 people tested positive during the last seven days in the UK. (https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-55494800)

I also feel for everyone in America as the numbers for infections are enormous. I must say that I feel very happy to be in a country that doesn’t tie your health care and other help to your job. In a crisis, you can lose your job and then all other benefits and assistance dry up.

2020 showed the world and big corporates that people can work from home and still do their jobs. Remote working isn’t a thing to flash in front of prospective staff or exisiting ones to hopefully keep them on or interested, it is something that actually works and remote staff have been shown to be highly engaged, do more work and yes, get more shit done!

As a mum and a person who would love more flexibility with her work life having businesses have remote roles are fantastic. I also don’t think they can go back now to saying that they cannot offer this. It is not just the young things that are working away that want to be flexible or have a remote schedule, no matter your age, where you are in life, having a flexible work life is a great thing to have and to strive for. 2020 has shown us that this can happen, it is not a new concept and one that I have always been promised at every place I have worked and yet it never ever happened or materialized until now.

See how a crisis makes things happen, sad don’t you think!

I hope that big business continues offering remote and flexible work to people. It has been proven it works and can be done, oh and it is cheaper to not have a dedicated desk for someone…. see it can have its benefits for both parties.

Being with family more this year has meant that we have spent more quality time together, and sometimes this time has been annoying. If you are a family of five and you cannot escape due to restrictions you have nowhere to go…I was keen to go to the library earlier in the year but it was closed, although now open.

I wish people wouldn’t panic over toilet paper

And don’t get me started on the stupid panic buying of toilet paper that has happened again. Yes, more idiots are stockpiling toilet paper due to new infections. I recently went to get some toilet paper to find that the aisle has yet again been emptied by people who are making sure they can go to the toilet with massive amounts of paper they are hoarding! I don’t understand why this is happening and still a thing. If you were worried about not leaving your house, wouldn’t buy bread, milk, and canned goods?

With 2021 nearly upon us I find it is a time to reflect on how lucky and grateful I am. I am very grateful for the house we live in, although it is not perfect and I want to fix so many things, it is ours, and it keeps us safe. I am grateful that we have all stayed healthy and not got the virus, I am grateful for the help we have had from the government to help us out when we had nothing and I am grateful for getting a job just before Christmas.

I did have big plans for 2020 but like everyone they didn’t occur due to the world health crisis, no money, no job, and then no way to travel. My big plans are waiting until things get better and some of my other big plans are going to happen next year in 2021.

I hope you and your family are well and safe. This year was horrible for all and I know that many are still suffering. I hope that things improve and 2021 brings you more of what you want.

Maybe Happy New Year is not what we should be saying…maybe we should be saying we survived, and we can do anything in 2021 after this year.

What are your thoughts on 2020? How did you cope during the pandemic and the economic crisis?

“Grateful” is my word for 2020 so far

It is hard to believe it is finally 2020, and yes I am posting about the new year later than I wanted (holidays and keeping kids entertained has taken preference).

Before the new year, we were all facing danger from impending fires, we left to be safe and some of my friends had to evacuate as the fire was practically on their doorstep.

December 2019 playing at a park in Wentworth Falls. Note the orange glow.

Many people across Australia have been affected by the fires and the devastation is still happening. I woke up Saturday morning to see that two fires have merged:

“Two fires straddling the NSW and Victorian border have merged, creating a 600,000-hectare “mega-fire” south of the Snowy Mountains, as a separate blaze in the Southern Highlands” (Sydney Morning Herald, 11th January 2020)

Looking at the Fires Near Me App all the fires in my local area (Blue Mountains, NSW) are finally being controlled, I am sure there is still fire burning and we are not out of danger yet (I was going to say out of the woods yet, but thought that might be in poor taste)

Victoria is facing such horrific fires and some places have been told to evacuate due to fire approaching quite quickly.

“More emergency warnings have been issued for Victoria and its East Gippsland region. Vic Emergency this morning warned of a bushfire east of Tamboon that is out-of-control and heading for the region. Tamboon, Tamboon South and Furnell could be impacted anytime within the next two hours,” it said.”

“Leaving now is the safest option before conditions become too dangerous.”

(13th January 2020 – https://www.news.com.au/technology/environment/scott-morrison-suffers-a-brutal-poll-setback-as-another-firefighter-dies-amid-the-australian-bushfire-crisis/live-coverage/aeebba02ce3a284e18cab8b7dd018a4a)

Australia is still in crisis due to all these fires burning. South Australia’s Kangaroo Island is on fire too! They have suffered badly with people losing their lives, houses and wildlife dying.

Red Fire Sun in December before we left on our holiday.

Before the new year comedian Celeste Barber started a fundraising page to assist the NSW Rural Firefighters and people affected by these horrible fires…little did she know that she would raise over $50 million! It was so surreal to watch the amount growing. All you needed to do was to refresh your Facebook page and suddenly the money on Celetes’ fundraiser grew by the thousands in only a few minutes. It took her only a few days to get to $20 million and now it is well over 50, many just sat there in awe of where the amount was up to and kept on sharing so that it could keep growing.

Celeste Barber is going to be hosting a star-studded concert to fundraise for all those affected by the fires. “The money raised will be split between the Red Cross, rural and regional fire services in affected stated and the RSPCA’s bushfire appeal”

The concert is called Fire Fight Australia tickets are on sale from 12pm 13th of January and below are some of the acts you can see at the 9 your concert, yes a huge and long event.

Global rock legends Queen + Adam Lambert, Grammy award-winning singer k.d. lang and Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Famer Alice Cooper are set to appear along with a cavalcade of Australian music industry heavyweights (in alphabetical order); Amy Shark, Baker Boy, Conrad Sewell, Daryl Braithwaite, Delta Goodrem, Grinspoon, Guy Sebastian, Hilltop Hoods, ICEHOUSE, Illy, Jessica Mauboy, John Farnham, Lee Kernaghan, Olivia Newton-John, Peking Duk, Pete Murray, Tina Arena and William Barton with many more to be announced.

There is a lot happening around our country at the moment and everyone is rallying to help others and to fundraise. I know there are many famous people that have helped out, but everyday Aussies are doing their bit by having morning teas, selling things, and just have a whip around to donate what they can.

Some people have not given money but time, these people have stopped in and left meals for exhausted firefighters, helped with other organisational work or just volunteered to be an extra pair of hands.

So as you can now see with all the fires burning, people having to evacuate, dealing with the horrible smoke and air quality, and constantly watching the Fires Near Me for updates it really hasn’t felt like a happy new year.

One word that I have thought about a lot in the first few weeks of 2020 is “Grateful”

I’m grateful we were not in the path of the fire, although there was a time where it looked like it might have been a possibility.

The Monday we came home from our holiday, our next-door neighbour told us that she had a lit leaf that was still burning land in her yard. A lit leaf, still burning! SHIT!

Ash and bunt leaves at our house when we came back from holiday

All we needed for more of these lit leaves to fall and we would have a fire and possibly no house.

Again we were grateful that this didn’t happen.

I am also grateful that all our friends evacuated and were safe.

I am grateful that some saved their houses and grateful that others only got to the garden and touched the garage and spared the main house.

When we packed to go away to Coffs Harbour we went earlier than we planned, and this was due to the highway around the corner to the house is closing up the road, we only needed the closure to go further down and we would not be able to leave. When this happened it was currently closed going towards Lithgow and they closed it going to Sydney but due to us being on the area out of the closure we were able to leave) and a fire in the next suburb and the RFS saying that all in this area to leave NOW! So we packed our holiday gear plus pictures, documents and other things that would be super hard to replace.

We knew that if we got ember strikes that we might lose the house and as we have 3 kids decided it was safer to leave and hope for the best.

When we returned we had ash everywhere and burnt and fully black leaves all over our garden and over the house. So it looked horrible and a rather scary scene to come back to. The sun was red from the fires and smoke and just looked eerie.

I walked around our house to make sure all was well and when our neighbour mentioned the lit leaf we were on high alert and made sure that we didn’t have any as well. We were lucky we didn’t find any leaves on fire and again the word grateful came to mind.

I felt lucky that we could come back to our house, I felt happy that we had somewhere that we could just sit and relax without having to ask others for permission. Currently, there are many that are offering up rooms and houses for those that have lost their house or unable to go back due to the fires.

I was also grateful for the fact that our family was never in harm’s way, many have seen horrible things and had to struggle to get out of towns engulfed in fire.

I am not sure that this is my word for the whole of 2020 but I believe it is a start. Maybe I will have a few words that will define this year.

On another note, we will enter the Chinese Year of the Rat on January 25th, and according to Chinese astrology, it is meant to be a great year for me.

However, reading the way the Rat cheated me an Ox it should be a good year, according to the stories the Rat tricked the Ox to be the first at the Emperors Party and this is why the Rat is the first animal of the 12 in Chinse Astrology. This does not surprise me about the rats, as my twins are rats and are very cheeky.

I hope you have had a nice start to 2020 and that you and your family are all safe from the fires.

If you are feeling like I am about the start to the year, what is your word for 2020? Let me know.

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