Breathe. We did it. January is well and truly over, and I think everyone is ready to close the door on what was a hell of a month. We got through a new lockdown announcement (here in England anyway), Blue Monday, Dry January, New Years resolutions, and what is often known as the most depressing month of the year.

And here we are now in February. Don’t get me wrong; while I’m so pleased to have completed Level 1 of 2021, is February really going to be all that different?

According to eparenting.co.uk, a website I assure you I do frequent usually, there are around 10 national holidays in the month of February. They range from the well-enjoyed Pancake day, to the sometimes heart-breaking Valentine’s Day, but also feature International Polar Bear Day and National Nutella Day (5^th Feb in case anyone wants an excuse to dive in with a spoon!). In one month there is a lot to celebrate, and this year I assure you I intend to celebrate as many of them as I can.

But sadly this February is different to any other we’ve had before. Many of us are still in lockdowns, or living under tough restrictions,  and for others, life still hasn’t returned to any form of normality. The fears we faced in January are still here, the issues we battled in January are still going, and the lack of control we may have felt hasn’t eased.

This February, there will be no pancake races. Valentine’s will be spent virtually over zoom. We haven’t even got a leap year to spark some interest at the end. So what are we really looking forward to? Is it that we are one step closer to the end? Many of us will now have family members or friends who have been vaccinated, edging us closer to the light at the end of the tunnel.

And while for many reasons we celebrate having exited January, I hope people don’t forget the good parts of that month. Because I promise you, if you are reading this, then you were amazing. You smashed January! And I know that because you’re here in February. You got through it. Don’t celebrate a month ending, celebrate yourself!

Perhaps we shouldn’t just be thankful it’s February. Maybe we should be proud that we made it to February. Isn’t that more important?

Image courtesy of Glen Carrie.