Good Riddance to 2020

I’m sure that I don’t need to say it, but what a crazy year 2020 has been. I’m sure that for most people, 2020 was a year to throw out any plans that you may have had and I’m no exception to that.

So as has been my tradition over the past few years, I’m going to attampt to once again take a look back at a topsy turvy 2020 and try to write what I hope to achieve in 2021.

2020

Trying to summarize 2020 is almost impossible. The entire world was decimated by the outgreak of COVID-19 and that included me. I originally flew down to SA in January and missed my flight back to China by two days as South Africa locked down and China’s entry policies slowly tightened. With every passing month there was another rumour that the borders would open up and eventually in September they did. The only problem for me was that my previous visa had expired which meant I needed to apply for a new one and just as I started that process they unofficially shut down applications.

It hasn’t been all bad though. I’ve managed to celebrate birthdays and the festive season with my parents. As they get older, these sorts of events are harder to do with me usually being thousands of kilometres away in China.

It’s also helped me appreciate family and friends more, as they’ve been an important puillar of support for me through a difficult year. Having lost my job early in the year and been unemployed since then, i’ve needed to rely on those around me to keep my spirits up and they’ve shown me the importance of having social interactions even during timesd of forced isolation.

2021

So what does 2021 hold in sotre? Well, I first need to see when I’ll have a chance to get back to Shanghai. Until then I can only guess what’s in store for me. I’ll probably need to find some part-time work to make ends meet. Once i’m back in Shanghai it should be far easier to find work that pays well and can help me get back on my feet.

Other than that I’ve used the first few days of this new year to get back into my Chinese studies. I really regret not studying harder as I did when I learnt Japanese.

I’m lso trying to keep up with my reading. Last year I managed to get through 10 books. While that’s by no means a large number, it’s a marked increase from previous years. This year I’m hoping to double that and reach a total of 20 books by the end of 2021.

So while 2020 was most definitely not a year I want to remember, I at least made it through without any health issues or anything particularly serious happening to any of my family and friends, and that’s really all we can ask for in these difficult times.

I’m publishing this as part of 100 Days To Offload. You can join in yourself by visiting https://100daystooffload.com.

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