Currently Chasing: A Mask

 The world is a crazy place. If someone would have told me that in 2020 I would be quarantined in Memphis, Tennessee, wading through an international pandemic, navigating an entirely new life and set of circumstances, and that I would own a dog, I would not have believed it. I absolutely NEVER thought I would be a dog owner. 2020 really is a trip. 

The last blog I have posted on here is from 2014. That girl would have never thought she would be outfitting a dog in cute sweaters from Amazon. That girl also could have never guessed the roller coaster she was setting herself up to ride. Let's just say 2019 was hard. One day I might get into exactly what made 2019 so difficult, but for now I will just say I was wearing a mask. 

It's a lot easier to walk through life behind a mask. But when that mask is ripped off, and you are exposed, its hard to look at that maskless version of yourself. I didn't have a whole lot of control over 2019. Someone else was yielding a lot of power over me, my life, and my direction. 

But I learned a lot during that time. I learned how strong I could be, and I learned where my true support resided. I also learned that although you cannot control how others respond to you, you can control your responses, and this time around, I try to keep mine rooted in kindness. I try to be as genuine as possible as often as possible. 

I have done a lot of good in my life. But I have also caused a lot of pain. All we can do is own our flaws and actually learn and evolve from them.

It's 2020, and I'm still wearing a mask. A much more literal one this time. And though the world can't always see, I'm smiling underneath it. I hope you are too.