Reflect and Celebrate

Like March, April is a special month - it’s my birthday month! I like to reflect and celebrate during this month. I go back through the past year to see if I accomplished any of what I said I would - Did I grow as a person? Make a difference in someone’s life or impact something? Improve myself physically or emotionally? Overall, what changes can I see from my last birthday to this one?

As I look back on this year, something that stands out was my youngest daughter leaving for college. Now, most of the time, it is just my husband and I. No one cares if we are on time, if the laundry is done or the house is clean. We are nearing the end of a pandemic and everyone works from home - no one goes anywhere. As I reflect, I wish I had been less worried about “accomplishing” and more worried about “savoring” this past year. It seems as I get older the world changes at a faster pace. Demands on people to create, accelerate, and produce have increased to the point that things of value go unnoticed. For instance, when I was a single mom, my goal was to get my 1 year old out the door on time. Although I rarely made it, in the instances when I did get out the door on time, I didn’t congratulate myself for the small accomplishment. When I got married and had more children, the goals increased. I had three kids, sporting activities, my job, laundry, and keeping up with the house. I constantly spent my time focusing on what I couldn’t get done. I never enjoyed what I did get done and more importantly with whom. Time continues to go way too fast. We don’t get a do over with our life.

However, even with all of that being said, as I reflect on this year, I am extremely proud to have started “augustwenty” and “the woman behind the company.” I have created a place for several people to work, where they can feel valued and a part of an extended family, hoping to make a difference in our employees lives. I am also happy with how I have grown personally—the last couple of years were hard. My father passed away unexpectedly and learning to live without him hasn’t been easy. He was my rock, security, and my safe place. In addition, my career took a turn and several other loved ones passed away. So reality is very different now, but I am excited to see what this next year brings.

So April, this year, will represent to me, appreciation, warmth, and new chances! I would love to hear some of your springtime traditions or reflections. Feel free to leave those in the comments.

For now,

Angela