2020, a year of disaster. First it was the fires in Australia. Then the crops in Africa. Next came coronavirus, and then the murder hornets. Last year left us all with one question: “What’s next?”

However, there were some positive things that happened in 2020 to each individual person, it just takes some searching to find it. After going around and asking a few people what good things could have happened in their lives in 2020, it was found that a lot of positive things actually did happen.  

“The quarantine in 2020 helped my mental health because it gave me more time to think about myself and the ways that I can improve,” stated Rocky student Gabby Anderson.  

It could have affected many others mental health in a good way as well if it improved hers. Quarantine also gave students unexpected opportunities to meet new people. Whether it was through video games, snapchat, Instagram, or even Tik Tok, many students ended up meeting new people and are grateful for the opportunity. 

“I met some of my best friends through Xbox during the quarantine,” Nolan Astley shared.  

Molli Lewis got a new job and met some of her best friends there as well: “I started working as Starbucks and it made it to where I met [editor Cheyanne Penrose] and all my other friends that I wouldn’t trade for anything.”

So, 2020 provided chances for some to improve their mental health and meet new friends, but what else?  

Well, many had also picked up new hobbies during that time of boredom. Nolan Astley had always “been into cars,” but it wasn’t till the quarantine that he “finally was able to start working on them.” Astley now has a 2011 Honda Accord Coupe that he has worked on for hours. 

Lewis picked up painting to ease her mind during quarantine. Hobbies were a great way to pass time while the nation was all stuck at home. Since Covid-19 started, many students also feel that their grades and school performance have improved. They have all had more time to work on things for school and feel learning is more at an individual’s own pace than it was before. As a result, some students’ grades have started to skyrocket, just another positive from the outbreak.  

Could there be anything else? Maybe just some random things that could have happened in 2020? Lewis stated that she “broke off some relationships” with the “toxic people in [her] life in 2020,” creating a “better environment for [her] mental health.” That is always a good thing that everyone should end up doing at some point in their lives.  

“I ended 2020 with some of the best people in my life,” said Nolan Astley.  

Meeting new people and getting rid of the toxic ones seemed to be a trend over the quarantine. Maybe that could be because people had a little more time to focus on themselves. Gabby Anderson said that she started “talking to [her] best friend a little more” and “Chey and I started to get closer because we had so much more time to talk to one another.” 

2020 could have many positives in your life; it just takes a second to find them and stop focusing on all the negative that happened throughout the year. I encourage anyone who reads this to find those positive things that happened in your life in 2020 and get rid of all those negative thoughts. It could make you a happier person as a whole and help you appreciate the things you have that you used to take for granted. So, what good things happened to you in 2020?