Thankful for 2020

This Thanksgiving it is two years since my first post on this site. As with all things new and shiny, I had been enthusiastic early on and made sure to post every 4 to 6 weeks. If I became a bit lax, I’d be sure to get a nudge from one of you. And that was the case just a few days back with my current silence stretching into week 12! 

My hiatus from the blog coincided with the start of the high school academic year, resume reviews for my college student applying for internships, planning for a milestone birthday, watching old age unfold at close quarters, Presidential elections, and a blurring of lines between work and home as the COVID-19 pandemic ebbed and crested. Every single one of these elements in life demanded my attention to the fullest, and I could go on to write 300 words on each! Rest assured, I am not actually going to do so; it would be an arduous read and I would lose you to the temptation to hit the X at the top of this window 😉 I am going to put most of them aside but for a couple.

Earlier this month as I was furtively trying to keep the lid on the surprise birthday party for hubby, we made an overnight trip to the city of Buckeye, a far-flung suburb of Phoenix, AZ. Our drive Friday late afternoon encountered the ubiquitous Los Angeles/Riverside traffic, the end of Daylight Savings time meant darkness crept up earlier, and we lost an hour when we reached our eastward destination in Arizona. About one in three cars in the hotel parking lot sported a California license plate, some even showed Irvine/Tustin origins!

“Are you here for the SAT?” the friendly lady at the lobby asked as we checked in. “We have many students coming in from California for those exams and also for sporting events.” Sure enough – at 7 a.m. the next morning at Youngker High School there were other “Irvinekars” along with us. Everyone had driven over 300 miles, paid thrice the average hotel rate, prioritizing their child’s future education over pandemic concerns. For millions of children across the world education has taken a beating this year, so in the larger scheme of things our trip was but a slight inconvenience.

As Saturday morning progressed, the final election results trickled in and we watched the television networks show a sea of blue deepen across the country. The SAT ran over four hours and it was well past noon that we picked up lunch and our hungry teenager to head back home. The Associated Press had called the elections and as we drove through the San Jacinto mountains listening to the Vice President-Elect and President-Elect speak, a sprinkling of showers left the air crisp and clean. We opened the windows to savor the freshness, enjoyed our coffee and the So Cal sun was still shining when we arrived home.

As this Thanksgiving holiday comes to a close, the blessing of good health, a close-knit family, loving friends, a career in an industry that saves lives, and nature’s bounty all around seems ever more precious.

~ AK Irvinekar