A Letter to my Relationship: It's Only Up From Here...

9/13/2020

2020 has been trash since it began, really.

New Years we had so much planned for this year, but the stupid global pandemic that is “Covid-19/ Corona Virus”, put a lot on hold.

From Kobe and GiGi passing to Chadwick Boseman and now Ruth Bader Ginsburg, so many bright, famous, innocent, regular black lives (added to the Black Lives Matter Movement) have been cut short. From Dre and I not receiving stimulus checks and my struggles with unemployment to Dre and I's money being played with in various ways, this year has been a hot mess.

Not to mention, family members of mine dying month after month, to several other daily and unnecessary stresses, we are still here.

We have survived Covid-19, quarantine, city lockdown, curfew limitations, stores being out of “essential” items like tissue, hand sanitizer, Lysol wipes, bleach, soap, etc and unfair, unarmed, racially motivated killings of black innocent men and women at the hands of white cops or racist white citizens.

We’ve survived being broke several times, we’ve survived being frustrated with each other, we’ve survived me starting a new full time job in Marketing just to lose it six month later(but we knew it wasn’t for me anyway, but I tried it to push myself out of my comfort zone).

We’ve survived apartment hunting(we’re still looking), we’ve opened a storage unit together and plan to have our own place by Spring or Summer of 2021. We’ve both started our own businesses/side hustles, Dre with dog training and golf lessons and myself with this blog and a resume/cover letter service.

Dre purchased his firearms and completed his Conceal Carry course and that's pending for me as well. We’re picking up new hobbies like the gun range, tennis, nature walks, working out together again and more.

This Covid-19 stopped work, money, plans, trips, events and goals for many all over the world. Everyone has been wearing masks for the last four months, it’s really become the new normal along with social distance guidelines, (standing 6-ft apart or wiping down everything before and after using it).

It’s made everyone clean freaks or germaphobes. It’s even made video chatting with family, friends, co-workers, couples, etc. more popular, he and I included. For us, it’s pushed back our Texas trip, our move out plans, and the gym visits we used to do regularly. It’s really been outside stressors and money issues that's been effecting our moves ahead.

We've talked about being more reflective, goal oriented, saving money, and apartment searching. We’ve discussed journaling, writing in our planners, changing our communication, breaking cycles and habits.

We’ve had conversations about being more productive, getting back to our flow charts(making a list of what we want, how to get it and why we need/want it), being brutally honest with each other, and business cards.

We’ve also chatted about diving more into our side hustles to bring in more income and really doing what makes us both happy, and from September of 2020 that’s what we intend to do.

Why? Because it’s only up from here.

Since Quarantine and Covid, I think we need to spend more time removing stress from our lives. I believe that’s what this stretch of time has shown us and that we clearly need to be in grind mode to make stuff happen by certain deadlines.

2021 will be filled with so much good, hope, love, achievements, growth, new beginnings, happiness and challenges that will only make us stronger. Our only way to go is up from here...