Johnson Law Group - July 2021

Johnson Law Group - July 2021

JohnsonLGroup.com

720.452.2540

JULY 2021

HERE’S HOPINGWE’RE BACK TO MORE THAN NORMAL EXPRESSING GRATITUDE AS THINGS GO BACK TO NORMAL

In case you didn’t know, July 1 was actually the exact halfway point through the year. Knowledge of that fact made me think back to the beginning of 2021, when things were far gloomier. There

dance class. Not too long ago, I took my kids to Chuck E. Cheese and had a ball — I think I was more pumped to be there than the kids were! On the way there, I was hopping around and dancing

was a hope that with the end of 2020 would come the end of the chaos and uncertainty that had been brought on by the pandemic, but to me personally, the first half of 2021 felt just as gloomy as the previous year. Still, there was hope for brighter days, and I think that halfway through this year, we’re starting to see them. While there was still a ton of uncertainty about the vaccines and whether or not they would work when the year started, now,

in my car, just so excited. Even though the pizza was awful, the mascot was nowhere to be seen, and there was no show on stage, it was still Chuck E. Cheese, and we were there together. We also are starting to have team lunches with everyone at our law office again, and we already have our holiday party scheduled. It’s surreal that we can have any parties anymore! As we enter the second half of this year, I think it’s going to be full of experiences like that, where we see the

“I hope that we’ll be able to see all the parties, concerts, sporting events, and family gatherings as more than just what’s normal. I hope we see them as blessings.”

As far as I can tell, the second half of this year will be all about getting closer and closer to normal. And with the return of “normal,” I hope the wealth of opportunities so many of us get to enjoy here in the United States will become something more than just what we expect. I hope we’ll be able to see all the parties, concerts, sporting events, and family gatherings as more than just what’s normal. I hope we see them as blessings. –Genet & Myles Johnson

most people would safely say they’ve helped things get back to normal. It was important to me to get my family and myself vaccinated (especially my grandmother). Since we’ve all been vaccinated, though, this summer has felt like a new beginning. I’ve taken my family out to restaurants to eat again. I’ve had friends over to our home for dinner. My kids are back in tae kwon do and

activities and pastimes we once took for granted as something to cherish. I’m looking forward to this upcoming football season, hopefully with more fans in the stadium cheering on my Oakland Raiders. (Yes, you read that right.) Just eight months ago, our mayor faced criticism for going to Thanksgiving dinner with his family. Hopefully this year, that concern won’t have to even cross our minds.

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FUN FACTS ABOUT THE FOURTH OF JULY

WHAT JARAH OQUIAS LOVES ABOUT W Meet Ja

You Can Share With Your Kids

What do your kids know about the Fourth of July? Do they know it’s a day when you have a barbecue, spend time with friends and neighbors, and watch a fireworks show? These hallmarks of the holiday certainly do make it fun and memorable, but they don’t really exemplify why we celebrate the Fourth of July, the anniversary of when the United States declared its independence from Britain. So, along with the sparklers and hot dogs, here are a few fun facts about Independence Day you can share with your kids to help them understand the significance of the holiday. The Fourth of July marks our country’s independence because it’s when the Continental Congress ratified the Declaration of Independence. This fact might seem like a no-brainer, but it contextualizes the holiday for kids. It’s a great jumping-off point to talk about why the United States wanted to be its own country, what the Continental Congress was, what the Declaration of Independence said, and what it means to “ratify” something. Two future presidents signed the Declaration of Independence: John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. They both died exactly 50 years later, on July 4, 1826. This fact is an interesting coincidence sure to fascinate both kids and adults. It’s also a great way to introduce kids to some of the Founding Fathers and share how they helped shape the United States today. In 1776, the year the United States was founded, only 2.5 million people lived here. Today, the U.S. population is 331 million. Lots of people have been born in the United States since it was founded, and millions more came here from other places, hoping to find a better life. Many succeeded, too. Many people want to call this country home! On the Fourth of July, around 155 million hot dogs are eaten in the United States. Okay, so this fact might not have anything to do with American history, but it’s still pretty funny! If anything, the fact that we have so many hot dogs to eat on that day is evidence of the prosperity so many people enjoy in the United States of America.

Jarah Oquias, Johnson Law Group’s Director of Finance, started her first accounting job when she still lived in the Philippines. She not only grew up there, but also earned her first bachelor’s degree there in development studies. While she didn’t have a background in accounting at that point, she found that she liked the work.

“I just like how there’s a science to it. If you put this number here, take it from there, it all works. It’s a logic field,” Jarah says.

Then, in 2013, her family moved to the United States. Her grandfather had lived in the U.S. for over 20 years at that point, and he had been working to get Jarah and the rest of her family (14 people in total) here as well. Shortly after settling down in Colorado, she spent almost four years doing accounting work for the local Boys and Girls Club. During that time, she decided to pursue a second bachelor’s degree in accounting, which she is pursuing while working full time.

Last February, Jarah found her way to Johnson Law Group after seeing that she could work fully

DOES DE HELP U

Many mental health experts blame the recent spike in mental illness on the DSM-5 (the standard classification of mental disorders) and the ever-expanding list of psychological conditions

it identifies. But others, like neuroscientist Stephen Porges, aren’t convinced we can attribute increasing mental health problems to just diagnoses — and new ideas about mental health are changing how we view depression forever. We used to think depression started in the head and presented physical symptoms as a result, a behavioral representation of the turmoil within. But Porges, and researchers like him, believe it’s actually opposite of that. They theorize that the body can take in stimuli and internalize situational >Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4

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