The year 2020 has truly thrown a curve ball our way with the
spread of Covid-19 which has assumed unprecedented proportions; more than half
the year has been spent in the midst lockdowns, quarantine and travel bans and
life as we know it has drastically changed for many. However, being the
resilient species we are, human beings have found ingenious ways to keep things
going. Thanks to the digital age, many of us are able to continue our daily
business of working, studying and even shopping using the online platform with
relative ease. The year has seen a lot of trials and heart-breaking loss, but
it is important to note some of the good we may have gained, perhaps without
even realizing it.

Here are a few hidden gains from this tumultuous year:

• A new way of doing things. This year stands tribute to our
  resilience and adaptability in the face of sudden and extensive change. It has
  compelled us to see ordinary things like going out or how we interact with
  others in a completely new way, to approach problems with novel solutions and
  provided us with a much-needed refresher’s course in personal health and public
  safety.
• Quality time with loved ones. Social distancing may be the
  new norm, but social connection has always been the cornerstone of rich
  emotional lives. Staying at home more has allowed families to reconnect
  emotionally, adjust with physically being in each other’s company for extended
  periods of time, and it has also helped establish healthy boundaries for being
  together.
• Revisiting ourselves. Deluged with our work, familial or
  social responsibilities, we often put our own interests in the backseat. We
  promise we will come back to them when we have time, but the time never seems
  to come. The lockdown put us in a forced break and many have rediscovered
  forgotten hobbies or finally got the time to pursue new ones.
• An existential wake up call. The pandemic has brought us
  face to face with our own mortality, and so this year has brought with it some
  much needed perspective. It may have each of us questioning whether we are
  living our life to the fullest, or it may have reaffirmed aspects about
  ourselves we already knew. In any case, it has nudged us to engage in a healthy
  dose of self-reflection.

Over the past decades of advancement, we have taken many
things for granted. We may not have given many of our personal relationships
the attention it deserved. We didn’t often acknowledge the privilege of clean
air and freedom to be outside without anxious thoughts about or own or our
family’s health. And all too often in the midst of our fast-paced lifestyles,
we have even forgotten what our own needs and desires are. 2020 may have been
the Pause button we needed but couldn’t take until it was thrust upon us by
nature a chance to contemplate about our lives, to redefine its meaning and
to appreciate its value.