2020 is a life-changing year that is worth remembering.

Over a million lives all over the world lost in the pandemic. Hundreds and thousands got infected and sick. Many are struggling to survive from this crisis that is obviously redefining a new normal. Social unrest and protests are increasingly becoming common everywhere. The outbreak has turned the economy upside down, and many industries and their employees got the major blow.

Hard to say this but 2020 feels like the worst year ever.

This is not meant to minimize the harsh realities because many of us lost loved ones, felt lost, sad, scared, frustrated, and broken at present. A glass half-full may still appear half-empty for most, but there were silver linings. For one, I came across to a creative list of 100, and here are some of my personal picks.

Drive-in movie theaters are making a comeback.

Restaurants share their secret recipes so we could make them at home. I’m actually one of those who tried the Wagamama’s curry recipe. Restaurants also got awesomely creative to keep their businesses going, while enforcing proper hygiene and social distancing.

Wearing sweatpants and tees is becoming an acceptable fashion.

People start brushing up new skills, like sewing to make masks; and rediscovering old hobbies like cooking, baking and gardening.

TikTok, Netflix, Zoom have somehow taken away our boredom and spiced up our social life during lockdown.

Some more here and there…

More and more people are practicing real good hygiene.

Teleworking, telemedicine, homeschooling, e-commerce, digital entertainment, takeaways and all the means that digital technology can deliver are taking centerstage.

We find the true heroes in the society who we remain thankful for – the teachers, health professionals and essential workers.

The coronavirus pandemic significantly impacted me and my family in many ways, but we’re grateful nonetheless that we are all safe and sound despite the chaos and the challenges surrounding us. And that’s a positive thing.

As I already shared my personal experience in the first half of 2020, the other half of the year generally entails our attempts to keep things running as normal as possible, especially for the kids. The entire world is also gradually trying to do the same, but still with so much caution. In Belgium, COVID rules were a bit more relaxed during summertime, and at some point, we were able to spend our summer holiday.

Yet as the surge of a second wave was on its way with the weather getting colder, stricter COVID rules got into place again. Thankfully though, schools are open #crossingfingers , most people and establishments are conscientiously following the rules, and working from home is still mandatory.

Belgium is by far faring better this time around compared to other European countries, where the number of infections is significantly much higher, and the threat of a variant is more imminent. Of course, we cannot afford to lose our guard down. #stayhome #blijfinuwkot #socialdistancing #washyourhands

We celebrated our Christmas holiday in a less festive way because of our tiny social bubble due to you-know-why. And you know what, I don’t mind that at all.

What do I like and not like?

On a more personal note, the COVID situation does make the benefit of teleworking obvious. Reductions in commuting to work or even elsewhere, especially at peak times, have dramatically decreased traffic and crowd congestion, and improved air quality. Time is also better spent for more productive activities than driving oneself to work.

On the other hand, what I did not like is the fact that we were not able to travel without all these restrictions due to COVID. In 2020 we planned to spend our summer holiday in Greece and our autumn getaway at Dutch heathlands.

Instead, we took a last-minute booking to our favorite place in Zutendaal for a weeklong break. By August, we went to Germany, with our negative COVID test results at hand, and self-quarantine after the trip.

By November, our plan to go to the Netherlands stalled when its government imposed a close-down of shops and restaurants, and a 14-day quarantine upon arrival for visitors. We took our sights onto Germany again, but this time around, Germany also followed suit.

So yes, our travels this year are very much limited to road trips and visits to places nearby.

What do I miss and not miss from the time before the pandemic started?

I really miss dining out in restaurants. For me nothing beats the experience of being pampered and served with delectable food, without me doing anything. I like cooking but it can be hard work. Takeaways are so convenient, but it doesn’t spark that kind of 🤩. Then come the dirty dishes. Sigh…I’m terribly missing the restaurants now.

Interestingly, I do not miss shopping. I went out shopping one time at this COVID period, and the feeling is not that mutual anymore. Perhaps it’s the anxious feeling of being with fellow shoppers, and not being able to stay long either to really have a good amount of time to choose and decide.  I now enjoy the convenience of shopping online, as long as my overall experience stays within the happy path! 😉

What did I learn this year?

ESSENTIALISM. I came across this term many years back through an article piece, which I obviously got interested so I bookmarked it for future reading. Over time I’ve been curious on several topics about life mindsets and philosophies, discerning on which ideas would fit into my expectations.

Fast forward to 2020, while the world is in this chaos and uncertainty, I’ve found myself focused on a single concept that seems to resonate very well in my life today and in the future. I’m finally committing to deeply learn, proactively apply and deliberately practice it.

In a nutshell, essentialism is…LESS BUT BETTER. How deceptively simple isn’t it? I’ll give it a shot, hopefully to improve our way of living the life we want.

What do I hope for in 2021?

WHEN WILL THIS PANDEMIC END?

I bet that I’m not alone in wishing to get an answer for this question. As vaccines are beginning to be rolled out across the world, we’re all crossing our fingers for this pandemic to finally end.

And are we going to return to normal? That, my friend, we still must see. I sincerely hope that what we’ve learned this year, we take it with us, move on and make it happen. I’ll be sensibly taking baby steps. 😉