Not free but Premiere can be subscribed so if you just have some footage to cut you should be able to rent it for a month or two and let the sub lapse until you need it again. Might be a less intense learning curve for the cost of a month or two

Right now there’s a growing stack of tracks that need vocals recorded and a couple of project revivals that need some last minute tweaking. And videos to make…blugh. COVID triggered an unusually long pause in my output, trying to crank it back up