Dear Friends,

I do hope you are keeping well. And by well I mean “safe.” It pains my heart to read that so many hospitals in the USA are full, and that the medical professionals are tired and depressed for so many reasons.

Anyway, the point of this post is not to re-hash what we should all know by now. It is to look back at this year.

For me, it started with such a hopeful note, although I had read about the virus in China that was causing a lot of concern. In January I woke up on the 1st thinking this would be the year I would be able to do things I had on my wish list. Travel more. Buy a home. Start up a small business on the side. I was ecstatic about my future.

January was like a dream to me as in my professional career, it was highlighted with a trip to the Bahamas to collect three World Travel Awards for our Company.

We also hosted the Cayman Cookout at GoldenEye, at The Ian Fleming Villa in January with well renowned Chefs who flew in on private jet from Cayman for the day.

In the beginning of March, it became clear to me that things were changing and changing fast. We kept hearing about the spread of the virus to the UK, and USA. We knew things were going to get SO much worse, and yes, they did.

I was asked to be be a part of the Jamaica Government Covid-19 Prototols team for the Company which back then, it was still called “Corona virus.” Myself and a work colleague spent 12 hours putting the hotel protocols together, we did not realise then, that the hotels would have to be closed down for a good six months due to the lockdown and the borders closing!

That’s when it hit me that the year was literally not going to turn out the way I wanted it or for that matter the way anyone wanted it! I have been fortunate enough to work from home and decided to “up the ante” on my fitness journey by setting up my veranda for daily workouts to post for my friends and followers who were asking for home workout tips. This was due to the gyms closing.

At the very time I could have cried the year away and become depressed I decided to fight through it with alot of balance and meditation. Balance via my workouts, dogs and supportive hubby.

I set my “veranda gym” up with dumbbells, an exercise ball, resistance bands and a huge basket of things to use during my workouts like the thick resistance band I use for glute work. I used my wooden benches for “bench work” and even a chair for some seated dumbbell exercises. As mentioned in my post what a year, most of these workouts are posted on my Instagram account under the highlights. Many people ask how I recorded myself. Simple a tripod that bends to be placed anywhere!

I took the time to add music and edit the videos so they could be shared to my social media and I received great feedback and questions. It has given me some insight as to where I think I am headed in the future post pandemic in terms of fitness. More to come in that as I still have a very busy job that keeps me on my toes.

What this year brought to me has been a new perspective of how to live my life based in how I chose to live it this next year. It’s been alot more lonely that is for sure. For everyone. However my realization that I was not getting the full balance of work versus my own time fully dawned on me this year. I love having flexible hours. It doesn’t mean I work less it means I found a way to “make my flexible hours work for me” to give me that time to do a workout, walk the dogs…cook. Meditate. Talk to my hubby. I don’t have a 9-5 office job and never will. I don’t need to be physically somewhere at a desk to work. I have a creative job that I work on whenever it is needed. That could be a 12 hour day on a weekend or a six hour day during the week. This is how I prefer it. I realize I don’t want the standard rules of work anymore as once you love what you do it really doesn’t matter if you end up working all day on a Sunday….or to midnight during the week. As long as the balance is there; and you love what you do – then all is good!

I would love to know how you intend to change the way you are going forward after this pandemic is behind us. How will your life change for the better? What have you realized this year that has made you think that your life has to change in some way?

Keep well. Keep safe.

Love,

Neenie xo