2020 - A GAP Year - Freckled Travelling

Now that we’re officially into the New Year, even according to the Lunar calendar, I’m ready to talk about last year. At least the parts of it that I have been able to process so far.

Before I had this lovely website (can you tell I’m excited about it?😆), I used to post articles on Medium, where I talk about my special connection to the New Year and where I review and reflect on the previous years. You can now find all of those articles here.

But let’s get to 2020. Back in September, on my way home from a short trip I took before summer was over, I was listening to this podcast. Gary Vee and Vishen Lakhiani talk about the challenges that 2020 brought forth. At some point, Gary mentions that what gets him through the tough times is GAP – Gratitude, Accountability, Perspective. ‘How cool’, I thought.

Two months later, as I am chatting with a friend from overseas and telling her about how this year went, I hear myself say: ‘For me, 2020 was the gap year I never took.’ Obviously, it was not the cool kind of sabbatical filled with travel to “find myself”, because I spent most of my time at home, like most of us.

Without a stable job or study program to follow, I mostly figured things out as I went and didn’t have a “socially accepted” structured life. It seems like we can call it a gap year, right?

As I reflected more and more on my year throughout December, I came to the conclusion that 2020 has really been a GAP year. I discovered 4 main GAPs that were part of my experience.

1. Grief. Anger. Pain

I was in this GAP even before the pandemic started altering the course of my life. My deliberately chosen isolation started shortly before we entered 2020. I needed some time and space to sit and listen to myself and figure out where these emotions were coming from and what they were trying to tell me.

Well, the Universe gave me a full year to do that. This GAP feels lighter now, but I still have work to do. It may come as a surprise for some, but I don’t have it all figured out just because we crossed into the New Year. Sooo, New Year, but not really New Me 😆.

2. Grace. Acceptance. Patience

When things get out of control, I tend to stress out. 2020 really challenged me with this one. Barely anything was in my control and it was tough. Making plans only for them to fall apart, being stuck at home and getting COVID were just a few of the situations that tested my patience.

I was forced to learn some grace and acceptance, because I had no other options. Things weren’t going according to plan and I had no power to change it. Or at least, I wasn’t able to find a way. Did I freak out? More than a few times. Have I been graceful and patient all the time? Absolutely not. However, I really believe I have gotten far better at it.

3. Growth. Action. Progress

When the outside world seems unmanageable, going within and focusing on what I can control is always a great strategy in the long-term. The best GAP I can think of. As difficult as it was so many times, I did my best to stick to my daily habits and practices. I failed a ton, but I also succeeded enough times to see improvements.

In a way, 2020 created the perfect conditions for me to realign with what brings me joy and excitement. So, I started taking action on my Soul Project and because of that, you’re reading this article on my website. I made good progress in so many areas of my life and that brings me to…

4. Gratitude. Awareness. Passion

I have reached new levels of awareness and gratitude last year. Despite all the challenges, I am among the fortunate ones that didn’t experience life or death situations. My main struggles were inner struggles. I didn’t have to switch over to survival mode. I had all my basic needs covered and more.

I was able to dive deep into my passions and do what makes me feel good. I read a lot of amazing books, went back to journaling by hand, spent time in nature and bonded with a sweet dog. I kept in touch with some amazing friends, reconnected with others and started new friendships online.

I am super appreciative of these little things that truly have been the big things and have helped me get through everything more easily. I am also incredibly grateful for all the wonderful people that held space for me to be as I needed to be throughout the entire year. If you’re reading this, please know that it means the world to me to have you in my life.

I honestly have a lot to be grateful for and there is a lot to unpack about my process of going from GAP to GAP last year. I won’t lay it all out here. I’ll just share one more thing.

Every year for the past 5 years or so, I’ve been choosing a mantra to guide and support me through the year. The one for 2020 was: ‘I step into my truth, one day at a time’. I went deep into my inner world and extracted whatever felt empowering and resilient out of there to keep me going. ‘One day at a time’ kept me going. And I feel closer to my truth than ever before.

Therefore, I call 2020 a great GAP year and I’m thankful it brought me to 2021 – the year when…