Make the Summer of 2021 Your Best Ever

My guess is you are as sick of this pandemic as I am. I miss my life and plan to reclaim it this summer. Here are some tips for joining me:

See your family! I haven’t been able to see my 84-year-old Dad in over a year. Now we’re both fully vaccinated and ready to party!
Get out of your house. I am soooo over sheltering in place, remote work, lockdown, whatever you want to call it. Go to those places in the US you’ve always wanted to visit. Get your kicks on Route 66.
Attend a mass gathering. I want to watch fireworks, go to concerts, attend a parade or a festival with lots of people. I miss humanity! There’s something about the energy of a crowd that can’t be replicated virtually.
Step away from the tech. Haven’t we had enough? Be present, look at the world around you. Don’t document everything on social media. Just soak it all in.
Forest bathe. Spend time walking in a wooded area. Trees emit chemicals that have health benefits to humans – no lie. Go out there and get you some!
Make sure to:
1. Attend or hold at least one cookout. Hotdogs, hamburgers and s’mores should be involved.
2. Drink lemonade.
3. Eat watermelon.
4. Do at least one cannonball.
5. Go to a beach – put your toes in the sand and watch a sunset.
6. Drink something with an umbrella in it.
Fly the flag on the 4^th of July. I’m proud to be an American – I hope you are too. Let’s celebrate. I’m tired of all the negativity. To me, this is the land of the free and the home of the brave. Here’s to some amber waves of grain!
Remember who you are. Embrace life, don’t cower from it. It’s easy to get complacent, to hunker down and let our lives become small (working from home, never seeing co-workers, attending events virtually, never traveling). We are better than that.
Take your time off! Burnout and overwork are worse than ever. The barrier between work and life has all but disappeared. There will ALWAYS be more work – but there will not always be more life.
Look at the stars. Visit a dark sky city if you can. If not, pick a clear summer night and get out there. Take a blanket, lay down and let your eyes adjust. Put 2020-2021 in perspective. It seems huge now, but it’s really very, very small.