Use 2020 as a learning experience

It’s New Year’s Eve and while most people are going to be home instead of out celebrating, it’ll certainly be a different type of celebration, as we enter a new year under “lock-down.”

But that’s been the “norm” throughout the year, hasn’t it? We’ve been “locked down” more than we’ve been allowed to dine out, have personal care services or get a haircut — and so begins a new year.

We can’t imagine that anyone would be unhappy about 2020 ending. It was a miserable year for many reasons — many of which were associated with COVID-19.

Thanks to the pandemic, people lost jobs, homes and more importantly, loved ones.

Dennis Anderson wrote in his “Easy Company” column on Wednesday that death has not taken a vacation this year. He’s right. In fact, death has been working overtime.

But even amid all the sorrow and gloominess that has surrounded us the past several months, some have not learned anything from it and continue to live their lives as

if there is not a pandemic running rampant.

We cannot change other peoples’ behavior. No amount of preaching, educating or pleading will make them follow rules. All we can do is try to protect ourselves as we navigate the murky water that was 2020 — and the beginning of 2021.

Living during a pandemic will teach a person many things, among those: Patience, understanding and compassion.

Of course, not everyone will pick up on the lessons, but those who do will be better for it.

This year has also opened our eyes to many different viewpoints. Sometimes we wish we could unsee what we’ve seen in others because 2020 brought out some ugly emotions. Social media rants are chief among those lessons that allowed us to see certain people in a different light. Maybe you no longer respect them because they made a comment that revealed a side to them you didn’t like. Or maybe you received a nasty email or had a falling out with a friend, relative or co-worker.

Either way, use those situations as opportunities to grow. You know what type of behavior you don’t like, so try to be a better person. The new year is going to start out rough, but hopefully it will get better soon.