MICKY MURRAY

SOOO OVER 2020!

CHRISTMAS IS AROUND

THE CORNER - a time for family, friends, celebrations, presents - our nights in have been replaced by zoom hang outs, nights out have been limited to table service and no dancing! And that’s only when we’re allowed out - are holidays coming when even the Coke-Cola Truck has been cancelled. I am sooo over 2020, as I’m sure everyone else is.

Now I’m not a Christmas person, but it winds me up when people call me Scrooge... bah-humbugbecause I’m an upbeat, positive person, always trying to look on the bright side of life. So forgive me if I don’t like Christmas songs, jumpers and the busy streets of the city.

Even as a child the only thing I really looked forward for Christmas was getting time off school, and I still like to take time off around the holidays to try and relax and catch up with friends, although I’m not sure how much catching up we’ll all be doing this year.

A few issues ago I mentioned about buying a house, thanks to you-know-what, I’m only getting to the end of the process now, so what I am looking for is spending my time off work decorating and making my house my home by putting up all the little random pieces of art I’ve been buying over the past few months. friends over the holidays- some festive cheer in my home. But I am excited I have a bit more time to paint some walls and take a few completely unnecessary trips to IKEA to buy candles, picture frames and more unnecessary items that I don’t even need.

One thing I do enjoy about Christmas is thinking of some New Years Resolutions. Usually I wait until the beginning of the year, but I’m so incredibly excited to get started on next years life plan.

This year, while trying to come up with the plan for 2020 eyeroll I had a really great conversation with a very good friend of mine, Jenna, about starting a life map, so I came up with the skeleton of a 5-year life plan and so far things are going pretty well. I bought some hexagon cork boards and printed out little pictures, so I have a picture of a house, a little car because I’m in the middle of my driving lessons, a couple of pictures of places I want to travel to, and other things I’d like to achieve over the next half a decade.

Now, I’m not sure how realistic it is to do the amount of travelling I had planned for 2021, especially because the vast majority of it is in the states, and while Trump is away (YEY), I can’t be dealing with covid/election result deniers, so those plans may need to be pushed a little.

While looking forward and coming up with a plan for the future I think it’s important to also look back at the previous year and reflect. I had a trip to New York booked for 2020, which was unfortunately cancelled, so I’ve got some flight vouchers which I’m looking forward to using… soon…hopefully. Obviously, for a lot of people, 2020 was a complete flop, understandably, so I’m actually feeling okay about my year, I was able to continue working, I made the most of video calls and bubbling with my immediate family, so I’m confident that I done what I could and made as much lemonade out of lemons as possible.

I’m fairly certain that many of us won’t want to look back and are over 2020 (a reason I’m seeing people stick the Christmas Tree up early) and want to fall into a nice ignorance bliss of Christmas and Christmas dinners, presents, putting up tree’s, and for the first time since March, act like everything is normal, forgetting everything that’s going on in the world and I believe that’s an okay decision to make.

Finally, I would like to take this time to update everyone on the campaign to #BanConversionTherapy. Last issue I wrote specifically about Conversion ‘Therapy’, the need to ban in, and the work that we’ve already been doing in the campaign, including the online petition which has now reached nearly 20,000 signatures!!

I’m absolutely delighted to say, after a meeting between the Justice, Communities, and Health Ministers, that legislation for a ban will be going forward through the Department for Communities. We don’t have a specific date yet as currently the plan is to legislate for the ban through the long awaited Sexual Orientation Strategy, which is due late 2021.

I’ll continue to post updates on the campaign page, my social media and through the magazine!

With all that in mind, I hope everyone is able to enjoy the holidays, however you celebrate or spend your time. Keep positive, look out for one another, and make the best out of what can truly be a difficult time of year! -- Thanks,

Micky Murray

Follow me online: Instagram: @micky.p.murray Facebook.com/micky.murray.75

This is an opinion piece from the columnist/contributor and not the opinion of GNI MAG / Romeo & Julian Publications Ltd.