AEE 1497: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly of 2020

Do you ever take the time to reflect on the year as it is about to end?

If we’re being honest, 2020 was a tough year for many of us but reflections are still quite helpful.

This is a great way to look back on the year in review, and to note the high points and the low points.

Today we will share with you our thoughts, and this may lead you to make your own observations and get into meaningful conversations about this crazy year.

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Reflections On This Year In Review

So as you are about to usher out 2020 and welcome in 2021, this is a great time to reflect on this year as a whole.

There are many things to think about in this crazy but difficult year, and reflections can be a great thing to do.

This can help you to think through the good and , and it can also be a great way to practice your vocabulary and conversation skills too.

If we’re all being very honest, 2020 was a very tough year.

If you look at vocabulary to describe this you could say that it was “a pain”, “a toughie”, or even just refer to it as “upsetting.”

There are plenty of words like this to describe just how difficult something is, and that applies to this year as a whole.

You are probably like so many of us who are hopeful that somehow next year will be better.

Somehow next year will be a good one, and bring so many wonderful things.

Big Things To Reflect On This Last Year

There were some really big things to happen in this year, and those are helpful to look at when you reflect upon things.

Each of us are going to talk about the things that we thought were big or noteworthy in this year, and they may be some similar thoughts to yours.

These can be great conversation starters, and help you to remember the high points and the low points.

Michelle

As Michelle looks at this year as a whole, there are several things that she found to be big and worth reflecting upon.

She found it tough handling working without any childcare. This is a big topic right now and an important one, as it is affecting so many people. Many of our listeners or students may be in the same sort of situation. As people were forced to work from home and schools closed, many parents found themselves in a situation where they had to work with their kids doing school virtually, and no childcare available. This is a huge balance and difficult to manage for many people.

It was tough not seeing people much. If we’re really being honest, this was one of the hard parts of the pandemic. Most of us had to go into isolation and quarantine away from the rest of the world. This meant that you couldn’t see your friends or family, and this caused a lot of negative emotions.

The bright spot, which is a great vocabulary word, was getting to see my son grow. As many of us were forced to stay out of home, a bright spot or positive point, in this was that we got to spend more time with family. That means getting to see your children more, watch them grow and change, and enjoy family time together overall. That is a joy!

She got to work more with AEE team as a whole. This pandemic and all of the negatives that came with it caused for some positives within a work situation. This meant that group conversations with coworkers happened more readily. She was also happy to help launch the business course, and had so much fun along the way!

She learned to slow down a bit. This forced many of us to stop the madness in our lives and just slow down. Rather than running all over the place and working crazy hours, many of us had more time to be at home and decompress a bit.

She learned to be more resilient. Sometimes in the face of adversity and difficult times, we have to be more resilient and get to a point where we can rise to the challenges before us. That may mean that we know how to handle difficult situations better. This is good in this year and in these challenges, but it can also help us throughout our life as a whole.

Her views and reflections are very likely similar to so many of ours.

These are helpful to look at when we want to think of the year in review, and so this is a great starting point.

Lindsay

It is always funny how we blame bad things on the year. This year was a perfect example of that because so many of us say that 2020 is horrible. We blame the year, for all of the bad things and this makes her laugh. Then we say goodbye to a year like things will change. This may not necessarily be a bad thing to do, as it helps us to remain optimistic about the future. Though it is certainly not the fault of this one year, it’s an easy way to blame something for so many negative issues. What are your thoughts on this?

She likes to look at quotes about hope because this makes her think of the new year.

“Love recognizes no barriers. It jumps hurdles, leaps fences, penetrates walls to arrive at its destination full of hope.” – Maya Angelou

“Hope is a renewable option: If you run out of it at the end of the day, you get to start over in the morning.” -Barbara Kingsolver

“The best way to not feel hopeless is to get up and do something. Don’t wait for good things to happen to you. If you go out and make some good things happen, you will fill the world with hope, you will fill yourself with hope.” -Barack Obama

All of these quotes are about hope and finding a positive, even in a negative situation.

As we move forward into a new year, it’s time to put aside the negative feelings about 2020.

You can reflect on this past year, both good and bad, and then move on with a renewed sense of hope to help you move forward.

Optimism is a great thing, and these quotes are very helpful to ensure that you move forward with the right mindset and attitude as a new year is upon us.