Tag: 2020

Happy New Year 2021!

Phew! We made it! What a relief to have a clean slate.

And a clean slate means another list of New Years resolutions.

I’ve read some posts on social media talking about not making any resolutions for this year in order to not pressure ourselves into a feeling of always needing to accomplish something, always needing to show that we’re doing something productive.

Especially with what happened in 2020, I’m sure a lot of people had to scrap some resolutions and goals they were looking forward to. I know I had to.

While I get that sentiment, I think it’s important to create resolutions and goals that are true to yourself, and not ones you think will capture the most attention from your friends or followers.

I also think that it’s important to allow ourselves grace in times when we lose sight of our goals. Grace is important so that we can give ourselves permission to come back and try again. That’s something I’ve learned year by year, with each resolution I come up with, and definitely in 2020.

And I used to be someone who didn’t like setting goals, for the fear of being disappointed in myself for not completing them.

But now that I am a person who sets goals, a few goals that I have this year are:

  • Make time for self-reflection by journaling on my current feelings at least once a month.
  • At work, problem solving for myself and use what I’ve learned before asking for guidance.
  • Make appointments with all my health professionals for routine check-ups.
  • Meditate a few times a week.

Overall, with these goals, and the others I have, I want to work towards the best version of myself. It also helps to know where I want to be in 5-10 years, so that I can create yearly goals that help me form habits to get there.

Have you made any New Year resolutions for 2021? It’s never to late to start!

Am I more excited about our new VP than I am about our new POTUS? YES!!!!!

I am writing this on Saturday November 7th, 2020 and we have learned that Joe Biden has reached over 270 electoral votes and is officially our new president-elect!!!!

For me, it’s been a morning of periodic whoops and yells and claps and jumping up and down to celebrate and release the stress I’ve been feeling all week, waiting for the election to be called.

While I am RELIEVED to not have to think about what another four years of Trump (bleh!!!) would look like, I am more ESCTATIC to think about what it means to have Kamala Harris be our next Vice President.

We’ll have our first BLACK VP.

We’ll have our first SOUTH ASIAN VP.

We’ll have our first WOMAN VP.

All in one!!!!!

It’s hard to think of Kamala Harris as one thing because she contains multitudes. I am consistently wrapping my head around it and I don’t care if I never make it all around.

It’s not a secret that women are always scrutinized in a way that men aren’t, especially in politics. One of them being associating motherhood to a woman’s worth.

We praise women for being mothers and show it as a sign of wholesomeness and that having your own children is part of being a “real” woman.

That’s what was consistently told to us by Republicans during the Amy Coney Barrett hearings. She’s a mother and that’s what makes her a good woman and what makes her a good judge because she will think about her role as a mother when she’s making decisions.

While Harris has adopted her husband’s children as her own, she technically does not have any of her own biological children.

And she’s okay with that! She’s still fulfilled by her life and what she’s done! And she has plans to do more!

She was also not continuously framed by her motherhood, or lack of motherhood. Unlike Amy Coney Barrett or even Sarah Palin, the last woman to be on a ticket as a VP. Additionally, Hillary Clinton was criticized for how she conducted her roll as a mother by conservatives.

And let me be clear here. Women who chose to be mothers are also amazing and do incredible work. There’s a lot of… just everything that goes into it that I can’t even imagine and I respect anyone who wants to take on that challenging role.

What I’m saying is that society is consistent in telling women that you cannot be a “real” woman or there’s something wrong with you if you don’t want to be a mother in some capacity. (All the Single Ladies by Rebecca Traister has multitude of examples. Highly recommend the read.)

Men are never framed by their fatherhood. No one says, “Hey, he’s a dad, maybe that will show that’s he’s sympathizes with families and other dads will like him and relate to him.” And if they are eternal bachelors, no one bats an eye.

I am incredibly grateful to have Kamala Harris as someone to look up to and show that motherhood does not have to be a major part of your identity in order to be legitimate in our society.

Women contain multitudes and it’s time we appreciate them for it!

And in terms of Harris’ new role as MADAM VICE PRESIDENT (!!) I am thinking… I am hoping that she will surprise us with what she does.