We are nearing the end of what for so many has been an extremely challenging year. We remain in the midst of a global health pandemic that has left more than one million people dead. We remain in tough and uncertain economic times. Many of us are left wondering how much more we can bear. And while the year has been tough for so many of us, hopefully we can look back at the year and remember what we have learned not just about the world, but about ourselves.

Perhaps one of the greatest lessons 2020 has left us with is that we are adaptable. We have learned new ways to work, to attend school, to communicate, to show our love, to exercise, to practice self-care and to take care of both our physical and our mental health. We have learned that while some things have been canceled, like concerts and in-person school, other things like hope, faith, love and kindness have not been canceled.

When we think about hope, we know that hope is the promise not just that things will get better but the understanding that regardless of what happens, we will be okay in the end. The pandemic will, eventually, end. And although we may have lost loved ones to the virus, we will move on from grief, in our own time and in our own way. Hope reminds us that while we may have lost our job, something will come to us in the future. Hope reminds us that we can endure; it may be tough but we will make it.

When we think about what this year has taught us, perhaps we are reminded about who and what is important to us. What really matters in your life? Who really matters? I think 2020 has taught us to be creative in the way we reach out to those we love and care about. Perhaps this challenging year has afforded you the opportunity to reach out to friends and family in creative ways, such as video chats, snail mail cards and letters, text messages and old-fashioned phone calls. Perhaps this past year has allowed you the opportunity to re-establish connections with friends with whom you have not spoken in a while. Perhaps this year helped you strengthen emotional bonds with the people most important to you.

I think this year has taught me and others to be creative in the ways we practice self-care. I think this year has taught us that self-care is crucial to our mental health and that it serves to allow us to give the best of ourselves to our loved ones, rather than giving what is left of ourselves. I hope this year has taught us that self-care is not selfish, it is an act of self-love. Perhaps this past year has forced you to find new ways to better take care of yourself, both physically and mentally. Perhaps this was the year you found yourself struggling with depression and anxiety and so reached out to a mental health professional to learn ways to navigate those feelings. Perhaps you learned this year that it takes more courage to reach out for help than it does to suffer in silence.

And just as we have learned that it is okay to take care of our mental health, we have learned how important it is to take care of our physical health. Yes, arranging a doctor’s appointment has become more challenging but we have adapted to telehealth and found that helpful. We have learned not to take our physical health for granted by becoming creative with the ways we exercise, setting up home gyms and getting outdoors more often. We have subscribed to food delivery services to make sure what we put in our bodies is healthy and nourishing.

As we have nourished our bodies, we have found new ways to nourish our souls. Perhaps the year 2020 has taught us that it is okay to not be okay. Perhaps 2020 has taught us that to look inward for answers to life’s most perplexing questions. Perhaps 2020 has taught us not to take ourselves, our friends and family for granted. Perhaps 2020 has taught us who and what is important, where we want to put our energies. Yes, 2020 has been challenging on many fronts and we can choose to look at 2020 as bad or we can pause for a moment and remember how 2020 changed our lives for the better. The choice is up to you. I am not saying that for many people 2020 was not a year of loss. I am asking you to think about what you have gained from this year. Strength. Resilience. Compassion. Kindness. Hope. Love.