12 Days of Christmas: 2020 Gave Me Time
In one of my most recent phone calls with my mam, we essentially agreed that 2020 is the year that everyone will just write off, and it’s easy to see why. This has undeniably been a difficult year that’s brought all sorts of difficulties to people across the globe. However, since this conversation, I’ve been trying to think of all the things I still achieved, thanks to the extra time gained throughout the year.
At the start of the pandemic, I was applying for jobs and not getting anywhere as I stared down finishing a fixed-term job, living on my own and experiencing loneliness. Like so many people I'd also become a bit frustrated with some of my hobbies as I'd not had as much time to devote to them as I'd liked, so suffered from a little bit of choice paralysis when some free time came up. With all that extra spare time then, I've definitely read more books, watched more shows and played more games than I've done in a long time. It's been a great way of unwinding and staying occupied now that I'm spending a lot more time on my own.
However, I’ve also picked up a few new hobbies along the way. I’ve been an occasional baker for a while now, but now I’ve all but perfected my own bread recipe (hint: herby loaves are better than anything else, and make excellent garlic bread!) I’ve also dabbled in quiches, cakes and cookies, as well as broadened what I can cook on the savoury side too.
Getting more into cooking has gone hand-in-hand with a much healthier attitude to food, generally. I’m now far more aware of both what my body needs and what I'm eating, and I'm feeling a lot healthier because of this. I've sometimes struggled with self-esteem thanks to my weight. Still, because of this change in attitude I've also gained a newfound love for exercise. I'm currently close to having lost thirty pounds by exercising at home and making healthier, heartier meals!
I’m also aware that, generally, I'm pretty bad at staying in touch with people. I don't think I take friendships or family for granted, but I'm also very guilty of not always thinking about staying in touch (and I'm consequently very thankful to have friends and family that are always available, no matter what!). With the physical distance, I've had both due to isolation and moving away from home, I've now had to be far more aware of who I've not heard from, or how people are doing and as such I think, despite that increased distance, I feel a lot closer to the people who are most important to me.
The additional time has also revitalised my career prospects; as someone interested in working in the creative industry, it’s not exactly been the best year to be looking for work, and the early months certainly reflected this. As the months wore on, though, I devoted time to pursuing freelance writing roles properly and eventually found my first few writing opportunities.
Thanks to this experience, I am about to transition into a full-time remote role with one of the UK’s leading entertainment publications! It’s a tremendous opportunity, but one that I don’t think I would have been able to work towards without both those aforementioned articles as well as opportunities to work on my writing with multiple sites including The Everyday!
It has been a year of many challenges, but by focussing on the positives, I’ve realised just how much I have actually achieved this year. They’re all very much personal goals, but the isolation necessitated focussing on myself. In such a crucial year (leaving university, moving away, looking for jobs etc.), having the additional weight of the pandemic on my shoulders and experiencing so many of the difficulties that the pandemic has brought to people all over the world has been challenging. Nevertheless, I'm now looking forward to Christmas and to going into 2021 happy, healthier, and in a career that I love, all thanks to the extra time that self-isolation has given me.
Written by Martin Shore
Martin Shore is a recent English Graduate who’s been managing a bar for the past year. He has been writing his own film blog and for whatculture.com for a couple years, and is about to commence a part-time master’s degree in Film Studies this September.