On the last day of the month of April, I think it's important to reflect on the lessons that this month has bestowed upon us. Thinking of things like "What are we carrying with us into the next month" and "What are we hoping to leave behind?" ... More importantly for me, did my Word of the Month have any effect on the outcome of how I maneuvered the month?

Find out the answers to all of that and more, on the next episode of Maury! … (I kidd.)

Now, if you remember, my chosen word for the month of April was: Boundaries. And as I've stated plenty of times, sometimes I have to think long and hard about what these words will be; and what if anything - can I do to hold myself accountable to these ways of thinking and living. Well, in more ways than one, I had to learn the limits of "Boundaries" and the ways in which my life is now dependent upon them. I think all of us did. 

As much as we all hate being quarantined and our idea of normalcy is no longer, being in Quarantine has challenged everything we know by battling the changes that Covid has forced us into. We've had no choice but to create and abide by many, many forms of boundaries. When my quarantine journey began, I was faced with a really hard decision of whether or not I would return to my mother's home or stay at my current residence. I struggled because for one, the idea of leaving my mother alone during all of this made me feel like a horrible kid, but then I had to remind myself of why I moved out in the first place and re-inforce the boundaries that I had set to ensure that the both of us could and would be happy and healthy. 

Was it easy to re-enforce those boundaries? Absolutely not - but they were placed there for a reason. And all of a sudden, the whole world became about living within forced boundaries and respecting those said boundaries. Enforcing rules such as:  if you're out and about, make sure you keep a distance of 6 ft., make sure that you're always wearing a mask and gloves, don't go to this place, and on and on. Therefore forcing all of us to re-evaluate our relationships with boundaries and in turn, making some of us create our own. 

I know that for most of us, myself included - when we hear the word "Boundaries", we automatically equate it to something negative. We look at it as a form of blockage from the things that we want or for some, we see it as a sort of confinement. But if there has been nothing else that I've learned through all of this, it is that boundaries are anything but negative. They can be: useful, an aide in accountability, a form of self-preservation, currently - a way to save lives, or a way to teach others how to treat you. The list goes on. The truth is that, for some friendships and/or relationships of any kinds; setting and enforcing boundaries may be the only way for that partnership to survive and finding the understanding to respect that is crucial. 

As we can all attest, it's not the easiest thing to live or abide by. However, it is quite literally the one thing keeping us from life or death ... and that's a blanket statement. I can't see what the future holds for us, nor do I know what the Word of The Month will be for May, yet. 

But I know that I'll be around to figure it out, both mentally and physically and for that, I can only be thankful.