2020 has surely been a year a like no other. It has been filled with heartache, injustice and equality, and a pandemic that continues to ravish the country. And despite all that could have destroyed us, here we are standing, head held high, ready to take on and conquer whatever 2021 brings with it!
Jamias Cascio said, “Resilience is about being able to overcome the unexpected. Sustainability is about survival. The goal of resilience is to thrive.” We survived 2020 and in 2021, one way or another, we shall thrive! But before we close out this year of the unexpected, here are a 20 lessons I learned in 2020.
1.) Today is all we have as tomorrow isn’t promised to anyone. Make the most of it.
2.) Viruses have no biases and the pandemic could care less about race, class or sex and neither should you. Be the best you and treat everyone fairly.
3.) Human touch is essential. Never negate the importance of human interaction as one day, one way or another, it could be taken away.
4.) Material possessions are not needed. They’re nice, but not needed and can never replace the existential importance of life itself.
5.) Time waits on no one. If you have been sitting on an idea waiting on the right time, like Nike says, “Just do it!” See #1 for reference.
6.) Work still can get done from home. Even though buildings closed, business did not. Many people learned to adapt and thrived working from home. Make the most of your home setting and continue to make it happen.
7.) Technology blesses and robs. Zoom became the new norm and many platforms like it blossomed as it became the only means to see our loved ones. Technology also robbed and widened the gap of human touch as celebrations of any kind became virtual.
8.) The church is the people. We know this, but like never before, it became evident that the church IS the people and not a building.
9.) Amazon is a beast. Pandemic or not, the behemoth known as Amazon never slowed down and picked up the slack to help the world continue forward.
10.) Mental Health is paramount. Long stretches of being isolated tested fortitude and resilience. As much as we are concerned with physical health, we need to be equally concerned with our mental health.
11.) With enough focused energy, dreams are possible. Forced to be inside, many tapped into their inner strengths and built their dreams.
12.) Money does not equate to happiness. All the money in the world couldn’t stop a pandemic or eradicate injustice. It’s that peace within and love for all mankind that produces true happiness.
13.) Virtual learning is not the same. Kids and teachers alike struggled and all the technology in the world cannot replace or replicate that student/teacher interaction. See #1 and #7.
14.) Perspective is the key. The pandemic forced people to shift their view, slow down, and appreciate the smaller things in life. It gave us all new perspective on what is important, what is needed, and what we can forgo.
15.) Family & Friends are a vital piece of our being. It is said that our family and friends are an extension of who we are and not being able to visit with them, properly mourn them, or celebrate the milestones with them has that even more real.
16.) Inner peace is crucial. If you cannot be at peace with the man in the mirror, it is almost impossible to be confined inside or in harmony with anyone around you. Learn to love yourself and be at peace with yourself.
17.) Less is more. We all learned to live with less and some even used the time to declutter their house and life, realizing much is not needed to be happy. See #4, #12 and #14.
18.) With every crown comes a cross. The victories won also come with lessons learned and and every accomplishment bears a responsibility to continue to grow, to pass along knowledge and to build future generations. Wearing the crown also means carrying a cross.
19.) The old school way still works. If you grew up playing board games, trying new recipes, reading books, imagining or creating new ways to have fun, you were good this past year. The things we persevered through equipped us for times just like this.
20.) The sun will still rise. No matter what the world looked like, the sun rose every day and just like it did, so will you. Keep rising to the challenge and get your shine on!
Happy New Year