Tommy and I began 2020 with high hopes and big dreams. It was the first year, after 30 years of marriage, that we would be business partners. We were excited and ready to conquer whatever obstacle stood in our way. After all, there are always obstacles when spouses work together, right? Would we be able to separate work from personal? Could we manage to have a family dinner without talking “shop”? Sure, we got this… But then. Covid19. Good grief, we did not anticipate that!
Our daughter, Hannah, was living in Sedona, AZ. We hadn’t taken a vacation that involved air travel in a few years so we decided we’d go check out Sedona, spend time with our daughter, hike and rest. We flew out on February 25th and returned March 3rd. Uh oh. I know. We’d heard the news but barely paid attention because we were on vacation. News and calories never count when you’re on vacation. When we returned to Maine things started getting a little weird, people started getting sick and we started paying attention. Our son, Jack, was finishing his senior year of college in Boston. He called to say he thought he had Covid. He will kill us if he reads this but we both snorted and said “It’s not the Covid” in Arnold Schwarzenegger’s voice. I’m sorry, I must sound like a terrible mother when I tell you this but Jack was the type of kid who always thought he had the newest ailment. When Hannah got her nursing degree it became all sorts of fun because he’d ask her what she knew about his various symptoms as we sat back and watched with amusement as she calmly told him nothing was wrong with him. We were, however, seriously concerned with the news and the very real possibility that Maine would shut down its borders to outside travelers. So off we went to Boston to pick up Jack so he and his girlfriend didn’t have to quarantine in their tiny studio apartment with who knows what happening in the city. As any obsessive mother would, I imagined empty grocery shelves, looting and general mayhem. He would finish his college education from the comfort and safety of our living room. Well… We were wrong. He did have Covid and as a result so did we. It was mild for all of us but we quarantined together with the help of some very special friends who brought groceries to our front porch. It was scary because it was so early and not much was known about the virus. All we knew is that people were dying which was terrifying but none of us felt like we were on deaths door. We just felt like crap. I remember calling my Dr and telling him I couldn’t smell or taste anything, to which he replied “That’s not a symptom of Covid” and I was like “Yes it is! I can’t smell or taste anything, I’m telling you…” Neither could Jack. Unfortunately when our sense of taste and smell came back they were altered in a way that’s very difficult to describe but it seemed to be the same for both of us. Most things had an underlying smell of burned rubber. Just an unpleasant odor we couldn’t shake. Garlic and coffee had the same smell and both smelled like skunk. Actual skunk smelled the same and I found myself asking Tommy if we were driving past a coffee shop or if there was a dead skunk on the side of the road. Just recently Jacks senses have returned to normal so I’m hoping mine will too. I’d love to eat a chocolate truffle that actually tastes like chocolate and not like a ball of dirt. For all of those who are thinking it’s a great way to lose weight or stop eating chocolate I’m here to tell you that is definitely not the case.
Fast forward to June. Hannah is still living in AZ but has moved to Scottsdale to start a dream job at an alternative cancer care clinic. Just weeks later she tested positive for Covid 19, quarantined alone (much to this obsessive mother’s dismay) and consequently left her job. As a result of weeks alone and plenty of time for reflection, Hannah returned home to the place where the mountains meet the sea and the soul is called by the mysterious pull of Midcoast Maine.
I’m actually surprised I haven’t seen this phrase used before but I got to thinking that 2020 is hindsight. Let me explain what I mean. So you know how when you live through something, make whatever decision you make at the time and then look back after it’s all said and done and are able to see so clearly that you really should have made a different decision? Hence making “Hindsight 2020”. In the case of this year, 2020 has given us a gift of learning lessons. Looking back I’d like to share five the most important things I learned in no particular order:
1. HOME is the most important place in the world.
2. Kindness is necessary.
3. Cruelty can not be tolerated.
4. Your health can not be taken for granted.
5. We are all in this together.
As we move into 2021, Tommy and I would like to wish you a happy and healthy new year. Our plans for the next year include more consistent communication including market updates, blog posts, emails and social media. We will be featuring local businesses we love so if you don’t already follow us on Instagram and Facebook navigate to bottom of any of our website pages and link from there. www.coastalmainerealtors.com.
Take good care and stay safe.
Warmly,
Alex and Tommy
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