Future, Dreaming, Longing

Beginning to See the Light

/ annabyang
Beginning to See the Light

All of my “memories” popping up from this time last year reflect our first few days of Shelter in Place in Illinois. Schools were closed and remote learning was mostly independent work (which was a disaster). I made a schedule for my kids and tried to keep them entertained through the volume of free content made available by different companies and individuals as they tried to help parents that were adjusting. There were YouTube art classes, virtual museum tours, and sing-a-longs. Our energy to engage in these activities waned quickly as the weeks of isolation dragged on.

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One Year of Pandemic Later

/ annabyang

It has been a year since had any type of “normal.” On March 13, 2020 we pre-emptively kept our kids home from school. We saw the writing on the wall that schools would likely be closing due to COVID-19, and we were right. Later that same day, our governor announced the closure of schools, limits on capacity in businesses, and other measures to curb the spread. The day before, we had gone shopping, thinking that we might be in “lockdown” for several weeks.

How wrong we were.

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History Has Its Eyes On Us

/ annabyang

I have had a huge sense of relief since January 20th, 2021. I felt like I let go of a breath that I have been holding for four years.

I made my two older kids watch the inauguration with me. Any politics aside, there was no denying the significance of the day. I cried buckets as I watched Kamala Harris, the first woman – and also a woman of color – be sworn in was an emotional moment. As she said in her speech when the results of the November election became clear, “I am the first woman to hold this office, but I will not be the last.”

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A Year, and a Decade

/ annabyang

2019-12-31 A Year and a Decade

Photo by Erwan Hesry on Unsplash

I saw a little quip on social media that since I was born in the 1980s, I have lived in four different decades, two different centuries, and two different millennia – all before hitting 40 years old.  I am of the Oregon Trail generation that had an analog childhood with a digital adulthood.  It still feels like the the world changes at lightning speed. Continue reading →

And Now Two

/ annabyang

2019-08-21 And Now Three

I didn’t write on the day that my rainbow baby turned two years old earlier this month.  There was a party, and then her actual birthday, and then we left for vacation a few days later.  I didn’t take the time out of the busy days to reflect on her the way that I should have. Continue reading →