I firmly believe that every achievement, however small, is worthy of celebration.
During the pandemic, many of us have not been able to celebrate the little wins with our nearest and dearest with face-to-face get-togethers. We have had to be creative and turn to more non-traditional methods in order to congratulate one another.
In the last few months, two of my closest friends, John and Bill, achieved things that I felt were cause for celebration. John got a new job, and Bill got a promotion. I was overjoyed for them.
In pre-pandemic times, we might have had an evening at the pub, a fancy meal together or even a road trip. However, because I don't live with either of them, none of this was possible. As Michael says, it's important to avoid swapping air with people outside our household until we get this pandemic under control.
But instead of doing nothing to directly honour their achievements beyond a congratulatory phonecall, I decided to treat both of my friends to surprise gifts which were personal to them.
Both of them noticeably perked up when they received these little gifts. Even though we couldn't celebrate together as we would have in normal times, they both really appreciated the gesture.
Matt