The year 2020 was definitely a terrible year for most people. I’ve seen people who lost their jobs, lost their small businesses or got infected by the coronavirus. I feel bad for those people and my prayers go out to them. I believe the only bad thing that I’ve experienced was not being able to train Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu for about 8 months. Besides all that, 2020 was actually not a bad year for me at all. Here is why:
I got to see the Shakira and JLO Super Bowl Halftime Show
It was fortunate that the lockdown started after Super Bowl 2020. Shakira and Jennifer Lopez are two of my favorite singers of all time. Their songs take me back to my childhood. I can probably sing most of Shakira’s songs by heart. Watching the Super Bowl halftime show was one of my top moments of 2020.
I was able to clear my mind during the lockdown
In March, my favorite month because I was born in March, the lockdown happened in New York City. School went fully remote, we were told to stay indoors unless we needed to go out. The fact that I didn’t take the subway to school every single day, and not trying to get to my classes through the crowded corridors of my school was a blessing. Staying home made me gather my thoughts on what I wanted to do with my life and how I was going to approach the last semester of school. Not dealing with the stress of getting to school and to my classes was enough to clear my mind, and made me realize that I didn’t want to live in New York City anymore.
The lockdown reduced my expenses
The lockdown reduced my expenses big time. I stopped spending $130+ on transportation every week. I stopped eating out and going to coffee shops, which cost me around $100 a week. It adds up to almost $500 a month, which is a big amount for a student. So having to stay at home for months has relieved me financially as well.
I moved out of New York City
Ever since I transferred to a 4 year college and started commuting to Manhattan every day, I started thinking that New York City was not for me. However, my school was in NYC and I had to be there. I couldn’t wait to graduate, so that I could leave the city and look for jobs outside of New York. Then, the pandemic happened and school went online. That was my opportunity to finally move out, since I only had one semester left and that was going to be online too. So in the summer of 2020, I finally moved out of NYC. That was one of the best things that happened to me in 2020.
I’ve seen all the Harry Potter movies for the first time
I started watching Harry Potter on the day that lockdown started. I just finished all the Harry Potter movies last month, so it took me about 8 months to go through 8 movies. I can finally say that I watched Harry Potter. I even read the first book, which I thought I would never do. I had so much fun reading the book. I’m not sure if it added anything important to my life, but I’m glad I’ve seen all the Harry Potter movies.
I received a job offer before I graduated
Thank God, I was able to get a full-time offer before my graduation. I felt really privileged for getting an offer during this strange time. It wasn’t easy getting the interview in the first place, and getting through the interview afterwards. With the help of people around me though, I was able to ace the interview. 2020 has already been going well for me, and getting the job offer was a cherry on top.
I graduated from college
After 4 years of attending lectures, writing essays, codes, presenting in front of a big class and pulling up all-nighters at the school library before some finals, I’m finally done with college. I already knew I was going to graduate in December 2020, but once I did, it felt like a huge weight off my shoulders. When I look back at 2020, these are the things I think of and I’m glad I experienced all of them. I’m wishing everyone a happy and healthy 2021, and wishing myself an even better year than 2020.
Baturalp Akin 