It has been a little while since my last blog, and I'm not going to list my excuses for that - we're in a pandemic, I'm trying to be nice to myself and there need not be any excuse for lack of productivity right now!
This has been a funny old year, and it feels like nothing has really happened and it hasn't been as busy as every other year, every month has sort of blurred into one. Easter was cancelled, Halloween was cancelled, Bonfire night was cancelled, and who knows about Christmas, so it doesn't feel like a normal year marked by key events. If you look at the 2020 calendar below, you'll see what I mean.
Alas, today is Friday 13th, and neither lockdown, nor coronavirus can change that! I was supposed to have my driving theory test this morning, but due to the lockdown it was cancelled. Given that it was meant to take place on the notoriously unlucky Friday 13th, I'm not sure whether the cancellation was a blessing or a curse.
I'm not actually superstitious at all, I mean, I will avoid walking under ladders and opening umbrellas indoors, but mainly because those are weird things to do, not because I'm worried about the spooky potential consequences. I also don't really like the number 13, but only because I'm not a fan of odd numbers...
A fear of Friday 13th even has its own word - paraskevidekatriaphobia.
I have a fear of pronouncing that word.
Seen as it's 2020, the year of the unpredictable, I am just hoping we can get through the day without any crises or disasters. Will you cross your fingers with me?
Are you superstitious? Do you spend Friday 13th in fear?
The saving grace of Friday 13th November 2020 is that it is apparently World Kindness day! As well as this year being marked by Coronavirus, I think it has also been a year greatly marked by the Black Lives Matter Movement, the key message of which pretty much boils down to kindness. A lot of what is needed to heal the world in my opinion comes down to kindness. We need to be kinder to ourselves, to others, no matter who they are or what they look like, and we need to be kinder to our earth.
'You can always, always give something, even if it is only kindness', Anne Frank, Tales From the Secret Annex.
Unfortunately, there are some people in the world who prefer to spread hate rather than kindness (*Trump I'm looking at you*), so those who care about being nice have to shout over the noise. Despite all the horrible noise at the moment, I challenge you to an act of kindness today. Maybe it'll be one of the 7 suggestions above, maybe you'll donate to charity, maybe you'll simply take more time to keep calm today and treat your fellow housemates/family with a special touch of kindness.
Another thing happening this weekend is Diwali, starting tomorrow. Diwali is the Indian festival of light, representing the spiritual overcoming of evil, of light over darkness, and knowledge over ignorance. In conjunction with World Kindness Day, I think the message of Diwali is just magical and we can all, Indian and not, take something from it.
So, we may be locked down, life may be miserable, and it may well be unlucky Friday 13th, but hey, there's always something light in the world to cheer us up. I mean, just this week the nation was uplifted a bit by the news of a potential working vaccine! We also celebrated the victory of Biden over Trump. AND we all get an extra bank holiday in 2022 - isn't that something to look forward to?! And if that wasn't enough... Friday 13th isn't really unlucky, it's just a day. So, there's that.
Now, I am obviously always kind, and today is no exception. Today I shall be cooking my family a luxurious baked mac 'n' cheese for dinner, I'm treating you all with this brilliant blog after a month-long hiatus, and if I'm feeling super kind I may even make a donation to Children in Need which shows tonight. What will you do to be extra kind today?
I will be back with another blog soon. I have lots of ideas - I just need to find the motivation somewhere!
Thanks for reading this random blog, and a happy Friday to you.
M x
P.S. 2020 has been a hard year for everyone. Small charities are suffering massively and are at risk of not surviving.
This year I have been taking part in the 500km Virtual Runner challenge, running/swimming/cycling 500k over the year, as well as taking on lots of random challenges each month! This is all in support of Sarcoma UK, the national sarcoma charity that funds vital research and support for patients and their families affected by the rare cancer. It is the ONLY charity for all sarcomas in the UK, and receives no government funding. If you want to support me, then you can donate whatever you can through this link. Even £1 would be greatly appreciated, and you can donate completely anonymously. Thank you!