Goodbye 2020

With 2020 (finally) coming to an end, it’s easy to look at this past year as a total write-off; however, it’s important to take this year as a learning opportunity, and a way to focus on how resilient we can be as humans.
​
Sure, we’ve endured A LOT- from a global pandemic to murder hornets, the deaths of legends such as Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Chadwick Boseman and Kobe Bryant, presidential impeachments, stock market crashes and raging wildfires, we’ve also witnessed some incredible things this past year.

Black Lives Matter Movement
While the killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbrey were inarguably horrific and unfair, the movement that followed was an incredible display of black pride and has provided a platform for education on equality. What we have experienced this past year has brought to light the injustice that people of colour have had to experience for hundreds of years. Going forward, we can treat people with more compassion, and speak up for any racial inequality we may witness in the future.

Kamala Harris
The November 2020 election brought a whirlwind of emotions, resulting in an outcome that will go down in history. The new Vice President Elect to the White House Kamala Harris will be the first black and the first Asian woman to serve as Vice President in American history. This could be a turning point in American politics- bringing more diversity in the leaders of the powerful country.

Covid-19 Vaccine
The biggest event of 2020 has undoubtedly been the coronavirus – it has affected every single person in one way or another. With the news of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, it means there is hope for an end to this deadly virus. While this is still in the beginning stages, we can all see the light at the end of this long, dark tunnel that coronavirus has been.

#ShopLocal
While we all may have shopped at small mom and pop run shops in the past, 2020 has been the year of supporting local shops and restaurants. Communities everywhere have rallied behind their favourite small businesses to keep them thriving through the tougher times that 2020 has brought. While it’s great to shop local to keep our favourite small shops from closing, we need to continue this trend going forward. Instead of turning back to the big guys, try to make a point to purchase gifts and products from small local shops whenever you can.

Pet Adoption
Because more people have spent more time at home in 2020, the numbers for pet adoptions have increased drastically over last year. This is incredible news, as so many animals spend their lives waiting to find their forever homes. We can try our best to keep these numbers up by adopting animals rather than purchasing them from breeders when we choose to add a furry friend to our homes.

These are just a few of the positive things that have come out of this past year.  Take a moment today to reflect on some positive things that happened in your personal life - did you get to spend more quality time with your family this year than you typically would? Did your grandparents learn how to FaceTime so you could stay connected from a distance? Let us know!

Congratulations! You’ve made it to the end of 2020! You’ve proved your resiliency and ability to adapt to all of the chaos that’s been thrown at the world this year. Let’s all forgive but not forget 2020, and hope for the best in 2021! 

---