It’s that time of the year, again!
We are getting ready to celebrate Christmas, the year is almost gone and it’s the perfect time to look back and reflect on what has happened this year.
Well, what a year has been. Undoubtedly, one of the craziest years we have ever lived. Personally, I cannot say it’s been the worst year of my life but it has definitely put me and my anxiety to a serious test!
We have all gone through a lot, this year, but I am sure there have been positive things too. I was reading the newsletter of a dear friend of mine, a couple of days ago, where she listed some positive things of 2020 because, she said, “I don’t want it to end thinking that it has had only negative things”. I’ve found it really inspiring and I want to do the same.
In such a terrible situation, it is very easy to say that everything went wrong this year, that we have lost a lot (projects, jobs, certainties and, what’s worse, people) and that the only thing we want is for 2020 to end. I surely want the year to end because it seems that 2021 will bring a vaccine and some hope but I don’t want to let it go before reflecting on its positive things.
Undoubtedly, 2020 showed me that I am definitely really good at accepting things. I have accepted what was going on way before friends and family and this has helped me quickly figure out ways to face this completely new situation. 2020 has made me realize that I am really lucky to have a comfortable home, a very little family that I love dearly, a supportive and loving husband, friends I miss a lot, and a dog that makes me laugh all the time.
But if I need to think about the most positive thing of 2020, this has definitely got to be my job. 2020 has confirmed how much I love my job and how lucky I am to be able to do what I do and how important my job is for me.
Some of you may remember that I had a big plan for this year, a dream that was about to come true: a language retreat here in Italy. It was my big event for 2020, something that has been a goal of mine for many years and that was slowly becoming reality.
That dream has gone, obviously, and when I realized that it was not going to happen, I freaked out a little bit. I thought that there was no chance for me to grow, improve, and do something better. I was scared everything I had so carefully built over the years was going to disappear.
Meanwhile, while I was panicking in my little world, something bigger was happening outside: there were people dying and everything was a mess. Little by little, all our external certainties crumbled and we had to basically hold on to what we had. Apart from friends and family, who were also fighting their own battles, the only thing I had was my job.
So, probably as a way to keep my mental sanity, I started pouring all my energies into my job. I worked multiple hours – way more than the years before – and put into my job all the love and dedication I had. For most of 2020, my job has been my safe place, the tranquil harbor where I could return every day, where everything was fine and I needn’t worry about a thing.
All the love and dedication I put into Instantly Italy made it grow in ways I hadn’t expected. It’s like all the love has come back to me multiplied. Now I have a lot of amazing students, many projects, and a promising future. Everything can change in a minute, I know, but things are good now and I couldn’t be more grateful. I have no doubts that 2020 would have been a definitely worse year if it weren’t for Instantly Italy.
But Instantly Italy isn’t just me, it’s all of us. I am only a part of this community and we make it special all together. This is why I need to thank you all for your presence, for giving me the opportunity of teaching what I know, and of sharing with you all the things I find interesting about Italian culture and life in this crazy country.
Thanks for reading my newsletter and giving me opinions on what is inside. Thanks for reading my posts and for leaving comments. Thanks for your enthusiasm on Instagram, for the love and support I always feel from you all the time. I am really lucky to have you here and I hope you can feel my gratitude.
I wish this was a normal year and we could all celebrate together but it’s not. Many people say that this is a good thing because we can focus on what really matters for us. For me, YOU definitely matter a lot and that’s why I want to wish you a Merry Christmas – if you celebrate – and, most importantly, I really want to wish you all the best for the new year.
I hope the new year will bring us a new beginning, some positive change and I hope we won’t forget the lessons we have learned this year. If we don’t, I have a feeling we can really do great things and live a better life. So let me wish you a really happy 2021, from the bottom of my heart. And thank you, once again.
AnnaMaria Chiandet says
In- studio yoga classes ended in March and so too ended my yoga teaching in person. As I watched many of my fellow-teachers move to on-line teaching, I felt frozen. How was I going to learn all this technology? Finally after months of stagnation, I realized that if things were going to change, it had to be me to change. With the help of my daughter, I started a website: agingwithyoga.com. I started teaching on-line Zoom classes in December. A new series will start up again in January. It’s hard to stay motivated in a vacuum, but it helps to know that there is a community out there, like InstantlyItaly, where you can tap in and not feel so alone. Thank you, Cinzia, for your weekly commitment to your newsletter and blog. It helps me keep my commitment to teach yoga online and figure out ways to grow this. Sending so many good wishes to you. AnnaMaria
cinzia says
Hello AnnaMaria,
I am so happy to hear that Instantly Italy is an inspiration for you!
Best wishes my dear!
Cinzia
Lisa says
We spent two glorious weeks a Firenze, we welcomed a new grandbaby, abbiamo comprato una casa nuova, we worked at home and spent time with family. Abbiamo mangiato troppo, abbiamo visto Mr Rushmore, ho letto e ho guardato netflix. Era un buon anno!!
Il mio italiano non è più bene ma c’è 2021 per studiare molto, non??
E Grazie per instantlyitaly!
cinzia says
Wow, mi sembra che sia stato un anno davvero ottimo!
Un grande abbraccio,
Cinzia