2020 was an extremely eventful year for the world, and for my own personal growth as well. While everyone was adjusting to the new ways of living in a global pandemic, many people (including myself) were quite isolated from society for the majority of the year. However, while I was waiting for the planet to go back to normal, I learned a lot about myself and the world around me due to the abundance of alone time that I found myself with. With that said, I thought I would share some lessons I learned in 2020 that I am going to be mindful of in 2021:
1. The more time I spend with myself, the more I have begun to understand who I am.
Being alone frequently in 2020 taught me that it’s okay to enjoy alone time and doing things by myself. Don’t get me wrong, I love to have company when I’m running errands or going on a picnic, but the more time that I have to myself, the more time I have to truly better myself and dig into the depths of my passions, my past, and who I strive to become in the future.
2. Read more books.
Spending time in quarantine made me realize that, despite being an English major and an aspiring writer, I’ve lost my love for reading as I’ve grown up due to school and burnout. I started challenging myself to read more books during my time at home and the spark that I once found in reading as a child was reignited. I hope to keep reading more books well into 2021, and to never feel like reading is a chore ever again.
3. To not take things for granted.
I’ve always been aware that life and the environment around me is fragile, but 2020 truly made me appreciate the small things in life, such as a friendly conversation at a fast food drive-through or a meaningful text from a loved one.
2020 may have been an incredibly difficult year, but the knowledge and self-improvement that I have gained from surviving a pandemic thus far is something that I will cherish for years to come. It is too easy to focus on the negatives and forget the aspects of your life that bring wisdom and sunshine into it. I urge everyone to look at the positives of last year and take that knowledge with them into this year.