Terenia Taras
2020 was a defining year in history and one of which most people would prefer to erase. But for me it was one of the best years in that I moved to Spain and made some amazing new friends.
Some of my long-term friendships have themselves become isolated as we gravitated to those people who shared similar opinions about Covid, lockdowns, Trump, Biden, Brexit and whether the story about Lily James and married actor Dominic West warranted so much media attention when we had far bigger things to worry about.
I have some fantastic memories of 2020, as well as the nightmare ones. Some of you might have read that my partner and I moved to Mallorca last year when we relocated with his job as a pilot for Jet2. As I ran my own PR consultancy business, and I use past tense deliberately because I’ve watched my clients slowly drop off one-by-one, I was in the enviable position of being able to work from anywhere. But as we all know, life didn’t quite go according to our plans in 2020.
Being a bit of a worrier and always having had the ability to take care of myself, Paul and I had to lean in and be more reliant on each other, not just financially, but also for mental support. In some ways Paul has become a better person as a result because many people identified themselves with what they did for a living, rather than who they really are. So, having not flown for the best part of 2020, Paul was just Paul. Like the rest of us there’s been nowhere to hide. Whether you’ve had to step-up and be heard in Zoom meetings, or completely reconsider your priorities in life, it’s all been a very humbling experience.
I too have had to try and adapt with my own work. Fortunately, despite my PR business being on the decline I was able to revert back to working as a journalist. I’ve dabbled in the stock market and my new nickname is Gordon Gecko (a character in the film Wall Street) after Paul asked me what I was doing one day, and I replied ‘I’m waiting for the markets to open’, he thought I meant food markets! I’ve also become very interested in art, having worked with artist and author Phillip Witcomb, aka Roberto Sendoya Escobar, the illegitimate son of Pablo Escobar.
But for me, the best bit about 2020 was discovering the amazing island we live on. Having the time to just explore beautiful places and meet new fun and interesting people. Both myself and Paul, along with the rest of the population are entering the start of another uncertain year. I know we’d all have liked to wake up Jan first and it’s all just been a bad dream, but we’re not quite over the top of the mountain yet.
The one thing I am certain of after being back in the UK for Christmas and New Year is that Mallorca’s my home, despite all the challenges we endured in 2020. So, fingers crossed, Jet2 will be flying regularly again and Paul can get back to work and off ERTE. As for me, I’m really not sure which direction my work will take me? But if I’ve learnt one thing in 2020, that is to just go with it.
You can follow me on Twitter and Instagram @tereniataras
