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Reflections on my COVID Year

By Victoria Rolfe



Our family enjoying a shelter-in-place moment in October. From left to right: John, me, Colin, Jesse, Amber and her fiancé, Brendan
Our family enjoying a shelter-in-place moment in October. From left to right: John, me, Colin, Jesse, Amber and her fiancé, Brendan

I’m afraid that many people will take umbrage with what I have to say. People like to commiserate. And most of you have had much to commiserate about since last March. Misery loves company, as the saying goes.


I don’t know, maybe it’s because I am an extreme introvert, but I have had quite the opposite reaction to this lockdown and sheltering in place. I have to admit (and I can hear lots of you groaning as I say it) that I enjoyed the change of pace.


There is a little (well maybe big) part of me that always secretly desired to just check out of the world and be by myself in my cozy little home in the country, away from the madding crowd, as it were (and there were quite the maddening crowds out there this year in particular).


Although I do enjoy teaching workshops on budgeting and vegetable gardening and manning “Ask the Master Gardener” tables at various events throughout the year, and my volunteer work at the library, I was privately relieved to give it all up for the year.


Now this is a little eerie, I must admit, but at a birthday party back on February 1st, after the candles were blown out and wishes made, someone suggested that we all go around the table and say what our hopes for 2020 were. Most people said things like they wanted to take a trip, or they hoped their daughter would have a baby, or they wanted to buy a new house. They looked at me a little askance when my humble wish was just to get to the point in life when I have nothing to do.


Yes, you heard me right, THAT was my wish for the year. I just wanted my world to stop for a little while, so I could have a little breather and catch up with things at home. I had no intention of dragging the rest of the world into this with me!


But here’s the kicker… even though my world (and everybody else’s) stopped for the year and I kind of got my wish, I still didn’t catch up with everything at home! Oh well… there’s always next year.


Here’s wishing you all a happy holiday and hoping that all your dreams come true for 2021!



 

Victoria Rolfe is a family budget coach who has had a lifetime of experience in the art and joy of frugal living and its resulting financial freedom. She spent many years as a stay-at-home mom and home economist and rose successfully to the challenge of raising a family of four kids on a modest income without incurring debt. She did crazy things like paying for all their cars with cash, paying off their mortgage in ten years, buying their next house for cash, and sending all her kids to college with no student loans, while building a comfortable retirement nest egg for their own bright future.

She is now passionate about helping others to enter this beautiful world of peaceful and simple frugality and to achieve their own financial goals with the knowledge and personal finance skills that she has acquired. She writes a monthly blog, teaches via a series of light-hearted group presentations that she created, and sees clients in one-on-one personal meetings.

Visit her website and blog at brightfuture2budget4.weebly.com, or email her at brightfuture2budget4@gmail.com.


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