BB2ME #37 – A lot can happen in a year

I walked into the bar and ordered a Guinness. It is my favorite beer, and I was planning to drink several. It was St. Patrick’s Day 2018. Going to an Irish Pub to celebrate is normal on March 17th. But this year was different for me. I was meeting a good friend to drown my sorrows. 2018 was off to a rough start, and I was going to drink Guinness until I felt better. Little did I know that my life would change dramatically that day.

I was not feeling lucky on St. Patrick’s Day.

The first few months of 2018 did not go well for me. My girlfriend and I broke up in January after several years. My dad suffered a stroke, almost died, and spent months in a rehabilitation center. The straw that broke the camel’s back was that my Alma mater, UVA, lost the worst game in the NCAA Men’s basketball tournament history. They were ranked #1 in the country and lost to the #16 seed, the University of Maryland in Baltimore County (UMBC). UVA was supposed to win easily, but they lost by twenty points. It was humiliating.

Why I wrote this billboard

I wrote this billboard as a reminder that life is not static. We live in a constant state of change – the world keeps spinning. Some things are getting better, while others are getting worse. It is easy for me to fall into a funk when my life is not going well. That is precisely where I was when I walked into O’Faolain’s Irish Pub on St. Patrick’s Day 2018. My expectations were low, and I was not looking for much more than to drink a lot. While there, I met Kim Parker. The future love of my life. What a lucky day, indeed.

One year later, at the same bar

Kim and I returned to O’Faolain’s a year later to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and our first anniversary. What a fantastic year it had been. We went on numerous trips and spent countless hours together. We talked about life, and sometimes nothing at all. It is funny that neither of us sought a relationship when we met. Yet, we decided to give it a go; it was one of the best decisions of my life. It is hard for me to express how much better my life was a year later because Kim was in it.

I overestimate what I can do in a day

I am a planner. Each day, I create a “to-do” list. It is usually quite long. Nowadays I prioritize my big three activities for the day to make sure that I accomplish them. It is a technique learned from Michael Hyatt. His Full-focus Planner is a helpful tool I use to manage my life. Despite these methods and tools I still overestimate what I can get done in a day. I think most of us do. Some days, it is depressing to review my results for the day and notice that I barely accomplished anything on my list. You may have the same problem. A lack of daily progress on your goals can be frustrating.

I underestimate what I can do in a year

The opposite is true when it comes to a longer timeline. I usually underestimate what I can do in a year. I set annual goals, but they tend to be somewhat conservative, not risky. The funny thing is that my plans for 2018 did not include any relationship goals. It seemed reasonable to think I would spend the entire year in bachelor mode. The reality is that a lot can change in a year. My relationship with Kim is a great example. Within a year of meeting, we went from knowing nothing about the other to wondering if we might want to consider spending the rest of our lives together. If someone told me I would meet a potential lifetime partner when I walked into that bar, I would have said you were crazy. I underestimate what can change in a year.

None of us know what will happen this year

Fast forward to 2020. Kim and I are engaged now. We plan to get married later this year. In the meantime, the world turned upside down with the COVID-19 health crisis. Like many people, the big goals and plans I had for this year were wiped away. The future seems uncertain in many ways. It is easy to get discouraged given the current state of the world. I will continue moving forward, planning for the future, and hoping for the best. I still have big plans for 2020 despite all the obvious challenges.

How I incorporated this billboard into my life

I wrote this billboard in 2019, yet it seems even more relevant this year. I hope and pray that COVID-19 will be in the rearview mirror by next year. 2020 is going to be a challenging year for all of us. Perhaps the worst year of our lives. It is like nothing I have seen before – a modern-day plague. Billions are quarantined, millions have lost jobs, and thousands died of the virus—sad news on all fronts. Yet, somehow, I remain optimistic about the future. I still believe my best days are ahead of me. I hope yours are as well.

Oh, sing to him you saints of his; give thanks to his holy name. His anger lasts a moment; his favor lasts for life! Weeping may go on all night, but in the morning there is joy.

Psalm 30:4-5

What about you?

How are you dealing with the crisis? Have you come to terms with the reality we face in 2020, a year like no other? I pray that the crisis ends soon so we can begin moving towards a brighter future.

Wow-what a difference a year makes. You have no idea what will happen in the next 365 days.

Dad

I am Doug Keating, and this is my letter to my sons.