Anyone else had a rough year? Well you wouldn’t be alone. I almost thought about making a post on all the things that had gone wrong for me in 2020. I’ve never wanted to post anything negative on my blog, but I had no idea how to talk about 2020 positively. Then the other week one of my friends asked everyone in our group chat to share their favourite memories from this year. Turns out the year wasn’t so terrible after all and we all did and achieved so much. So I’m going to share with you some of the things that I am grateful for in 2020.

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FRIENDS & FAMILY

This has to be the first thing I mention. With lockdowns and social distancings restrictions, it has been quite a lonely year. We’ve spent most of our time at home only speaking face-to-face with the people we live with. Maintaining contact with friends and family in any form has gotten me through the year. When I lost my job I had so many people I love reach out to me to offer their help. It reminded me how lucky I truly am. I will forever be grateful for their support and companionship.

THE ONLY HOLIDAY I HAD THIS YEAR: EDINBURGH

Only a week or two before the first lockdown, me and my family went to Edinburgh for a few days. I currently live away from home so I appreciated getting to spend time with them on this wonderful trip before everything went down. It was freezing but we saw the sights, had some great food, and got to spend some quality time together. It was also the last holiday I have been on.

I MANAGED TO SEE SOME THEATRE…

Before theatre shutdown, I was lucky enough to fit some shows into my schedule at the beginning of the year. This included seeing ‘Waitress’ twice; one with Sara Bareilles and Gavin Creel, and the other with Desi Oakely who flew in as an emergency cover Jenna. Both were incredible and both times I was joined by my theatre-loving flatmate Aksa! My friend Michaela also gave me tickets to see ‘Come From Away’ in the second row for my birthday! This show has my whole heart. In October, I also managed to see a socially distanced production of ‘The Last Five Years’. That same production was the last theatre show I saw before lockdown so it all came around full circle. I’m hoping 2021 will allow more theatre back into my life.

THE CHAOS OF YOUTUBE WORKOUTS

The first lockdown was honestly so wild. The main thing that kept me sane was my daily morning workouts with my flatmate Sam and our friend Evelynn, who FaceTimed in. It’s crazy how we’d wake up every morning and rearrange our furniture just so we could workout. My mental and physical health was given a boost because of it for sure.

GOING TO THORPE PARK… TWICE? IN A PANDEMIC?

One of the benefits of having a friend that works for Merlin is they can sometimes get you into attractions for free (thanks Sam, you’re amazing). When the restrictions were lifted in Autumn I got to go to Thorpe Park not once, but twice. In a year of cancelled holidays, this exciting trip out felt like a holiday in itself. We even had time for a cute photoshoot with the Halloween decorations. These two days were the most I had smiled all year.

MY FRIENDS GOT NEW PETS AND IT BENEFITTED ME

Puppies always improve any situation. Near the beginning of the year my friend Anna got a new puppy and I eventually got to meet him! He’s called Louis and he’s super cute and energetic. Another friend of mine, Evelynn, also recently got a bunny named Winn. I have very much enjoyed receiving adorable videos of them both. I know these may seem like their gratitudes of 2020, but my friends having pets also benefits me.

TAYLOR SWIFT RELEASED TWO WHOLE ALBUMS

It felt like 2020 had no fun surprises… until Taylor Swift woke up one morning like “hey, I’m dropping a new album at midnight.” Just when we were starting to get over the first one, SHE DID IT AGAIN! I mean it when I say Folklore rescued the first half of my 2020, and Evermore saved the last.

CONSTANT ZOOM FUN

Maybe this is a tad dramatic, but I fully believe Zoom quizzes saved my year. When you can’t meet up with friends and family in-person, you’ve got to get creative with technology. Whilst it wasn’t fun not getting to hang out with them in person, it was fun getting to do something we wouldn’t have normally have done. Quizzes aren’t the only thing we did over zoom. You may have heard of a little game called ‘Among Us’ which has very quickly become a favourite amongst my friendship group. I’ve even just used Zoom for casual chats with friends who live across the pond. Somehow Zoom really became the hero of 2020.

OUR NEIGHBOURS TRUSTED US TO CAT-SIT

Back in September, our neighbours in the flat below went on a little getaway to Cornwall (exotic for 2020). Imagine mine and my flatmates delight when we got asked to cat-sit for them! I learned that I am very needy for attention, and cats are not. But I enjoyed pretending I had a pet for a few days.

CONFIRMATION THAT MY FLATMATES ARE THE BEST

So I already knew my flatmates were pretty great, but having to spend every day with them confirmed this. I’m so grateful to Sam and Aksa for keeping me sane throughout this year. During the summer we went for picnics in the park, often we binged a lot of trash tv, and we even started making a “vlog” of our flat life. Granted we haven’t edited the videos yet, but we will eventually and it will be the world’s most terrible vlog. Whilst it was awfully unfortunate they both couldn’t celebrate Eid with their families, I had fun being able to celebrate it with them. I am so thankful to live with such lovely people. This year would have been so dull without them.

COMPLETING COUCH TO 5K EVEN THOUGH I HATE RUNNING

From YouTube workouts in the flat, to running outdoors in the park! I have never been much of a runner, so it was crazy I actively chose to do this. Completing it was even wilder. It was a huge personal achievement for me. Who would have thought at the start of 2020 I would end up getting out of bed and going for a run. Certainly not me!

SPENDING THE END OF THE YEAR WITH MY FAMILY

Luckily I managed to get out of London before full lockdown restrictions we put back into place. I am so fortunate to be able to spend most of December at home with my family. Now I think about it, it has also been years since I have spent New Years Eve at home. Obviously, we can’t exactly go anywhere, but it will be wonderful to ring in the new year with my parents and brother.

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Wishing you all a Happy New Year. I can’t promise 2021 will be any better, but we will always be able to find little sparks of happiness in between even the hardest of years.

What were your 2020 highlights? Let me know in the comments!