2020 was some year, huh?

I learned a little bit more about what’s really important in life: health, family, and good friends.

After that, all the other stuff really isn’t that important.

What did 2020 teach you?

Here’s what folks on AskReddit had to say.

1. A good thing.

“My job can absolutely be done from home.

And honestly, I work harder and more efficiently like this, anyway.”

2. Gets old.

“Video games are fun, but not when its the only thing you can do.”

3. Patience.

“The thing I learned that is most beneficial to me, was certainly to be patient. At the start of the year, I wanted everything asap, I thought Covid would be done in months.

Now the idea of waiting a year, or even 3 is not that terrible anymore. It has given me a lot of peace, I feel less stressed about everything.

I still got at least 30 years to live, maybe as much as 60, I have enough time for whatever I want to do. I will still have enough time in a decade.”

4. Do your part!

“It’s one massive group project.

I know I’m doing my part right but the rest of the group is messing it up for me.”

5. Take a break.

“It’s healthy to disconnect from news and media.

We are not wired to feel horrible all the time, even when bad things are happening we don’t have to constantly feel angry or sad about it.

It’s more humane to find peace and things worth striving for than to exist in an unending paralysis of sympathy and guilt.”

6. Gettin’ busy in the kitchen.

“How to bake amazing sourdough bread & pastry at home! And cooking in general, which I never took interest in before.

The YouTube cooking community is absolutely amazing. Check out Alex the French Guy, Joshua Weissman, Binging with Babish & Bread by Joy Ride Coffee.”

7. Sad, but true.

“I realized a sizable chunk of America could be talked into supporting a genocide if enough articles supporting it showed up on their FB feed.”

8. Oh, come on!

“That my teachers can‘t use computers.

Seriously how hard can it be to send an email with exercises?”

9. Very true.

“I feel it exposed the friendships of convenience.

The people you hang out with to do mostly an event like board games, or watching sports, or exercise or whatever. I don’t think those friendships are bad friendships they just are what they are.

I haven’t talked to much of board game group in months, but I know I’ll see them once we can meet up in groups again.”

10. Ugghhhh.

“I learned that if zombies were real people would refuse to believe it.

And if they got infected they would not go get treated because it’s my body, my choice.”

11. Sure seems like it.

“When you think it can’t get worse, it definitely can.”

12. Be careful.

“It CAN happen to you.

I had a tumor and had COVID a few months after surgery for removal of my tumor in my parotid gland. I never thought either of those things would happen to me..a young healthy person.

But they did.. I survived and I am grateful for everyday!!!”

13. That’s too bad.

“Some friendships cannot survive a pandemic.

Even ones that are 30 years old.”

14. It’s over.

“I’ve realized I don’t WANT my friendships to survive.

Although the pandemic has played a role, I’ve realized that my friends absolutely don’t try. Over the past three years, I’ve always made excuses for it, but I’m tired of doing that.

I blocked/muted them on my social media accounts a few weeks ago and I’m no longer so anxious and worrying about our friendship and why I never hear from them.”

15. Working from home.

“I’ve been open for a long time about how working from home for jobs that can be done remotely should be the norm.

Why would you commute if it’s avoidable? The pandemic has forced lots of employers’ hands and it turns out, many of us can work effectively from home!”

16. I like this one.

“Let me never fall into the vulgar mistake of dreaming that I am persecuted whenever I am contradicted.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Sadly, I feel like this is the most relevant this quote has ever been. People conflating science and societal care with tyranny and violation of rights.”

17. Harsh times.

“Nothing can prepare you for the harshness of our society.

If you want to be successful and live you have to take your life into your own hands and make things happen.”

18. Some people don’t change.

“It taught me the red flags of a mentally abusive relationship and that you will never be able to change that person.”

19. Congrats!

“It taught me that my SO is definitely the person I’m going to spend the rest of my life with.

Nothing like a global pandemic and shelter in place order to rapidly progress a new relationship, eh?”

20. Pay attention.

“Authoritarianism is never that far away in any place.

People are too willing to forgo critical thinking and will readily buy the bullsh*t.”

21. Downsizing.

“That I don’t need to shop.

My son and I don’t need to go out every weekend and buy new things. We are perfectly capable with what we have. In fact we’ve pared down what we had.

Money in the bank. Soon as this passes over (if…) we’re going to Disney!”

22. Learn to think!

“That huge swaths of our society lack even the most basic critical thinking skills.

Sorry, but if you outright deny facts and empirical evidence to believe in something comfortable to you, you aren’t some “woke up” great thinker above all the “sheep”.

You’re a moron and a huge drain on the rest of us.”

23. Great!

“I love being a dad.

Being a stay at home dad is awesome. The roles were always reversed until now and I felt like I was missing so much of my kids lives providing for them. Going from bread winner to Mr mom obviously took some adjustments but I feel like I know my boys better than ever.

Helping them doing their online kindergarten classes and teaching my youngest to walk along with another long list of memories has changed my view on fatherhood and taught me so much.”

24. Good points.

“Even if you think you are in control of the things in your life, you really aren’t.

Sometimes the things you want and work hard for aren’t what you thought they would be.

The most important things in life are the intangible ones (good relationships, mental well-being)

We could all stand to be a little nicer to each other

It’s okay to not be okay.”

25. Yup.

“That the more uneducated people are, the more assertive and vocal they are regarding something they don’t have any clue about!”

26. Not so fast.

“I’ve learnt that I’m ready for retirement.

The lifestyle of doing nothing all day and getting paid for the privilege suits me well.

It’s a shame I have 31 more years until I actually can retire though.”

27. Baby steps.

“That a little work on something every day makes a huge difference over a couple of months.”

28. A nice story.

“That despite all those things my parents lead me to believe, I can be successful.

I bought my first house this year, reconnected with a good friend and am starting a business with her. It’s been rough having zero breaks from my kids and they’re missing out on socializing and preschool, but we have grown closer and they’re learning a new resilience that I never learned.

I’m proud of them and myself.”

Now we’d like to hear from you.

In the comments, tell us what you learned in 2020.

Please and thank you!