Have you ever sat down and thought, "maybe I can make a difference"?.This moment in history has been one of the best. Also, one of the most rewarding parts of my life. From a pandemic that leads to an extended spring break, online school, months of quarantine, wildfires, racial injustices and riots, election drama, and so much more. I can confidently say 2020 was the worst year of my life. Through all that everyone went through, I can now see the end of the tunnel.  This moment in history consisted of so much wrong it was hard to see the good. 

To start the year off, the school went online. Some liked Zooms every day, and some people could not stand them. The best part about it all was that grades could not drop. Steady grades saved A LOT of people. According to Education Week, "Sixty-one percent say they are concerned about falling behind academically because of the pandemic, a fear that is especially pronounced among Asian and Latino teens—67 and 79 percent, respectively." (Prothero). I can fall into that sixty-one percent. I don't feel prepared to take A.P. tests right now. In my opinion, remote learning could be at the top of the list for the most important things that happened during 2020. We have never experienced this before, and now normal seems abnormal. 

Halfway through the summer, our nation took a turn for the worse. Not with the pandemic, but humanity itself fell through the drain. Every decent act we knew went away, and things were chaotic. "Four weeks after George Floyd's death at the hands of police officers in Minneapolis, thousands of people across the U.S. and the world have taken to the streets to demand justice, condemn racism, and speak out against police brutality." (Ankle). This started it all. The death of George Floyd was an eye-opener for many. Hearing about this broke my heart for so many people. Not only people of color but for anyone who had been affected. There was no good to this. Police officers were killed, innocent and some noninnocent protesters were killed. These murders caused so much damage and hurt. "More than a dozen police departments in California have said they will ban chokeholds" (Ankle). This event caused laws to change, views to change, and most importantly, people to change. I have never seen so many black screens all across Instagram and other social media platforms. This long, drawn-out moment in history is nothing we haven't seen before, but it is something that has to change.

I experienced the effects quarantine had on people's not just physical health but also mental health. "An estimated 17.3 million adults in the United States had at least one major depressive episode. This number represented 7.1% of all U.S. adults." (NIMH). 7.1% doesn't seem like a lot until you see 17.3 million. These numbers were from 2017, and in 2020 alone, I had three friends experience depression in different ways. They ranged from moments of suicidal thoughts to seem like the happiest person. After quarantine "ended," things got better, and their depression subsided. I have a feeling this happened with quite a few people over the summer. Depression and suicide numbers over quarantine went up, and now everyone is trying their hardest to feel okay again.  

This moment in history consisted of so much wrong it was hard to see the good. While there were good moments, and I learned a lot, this moment in history is something I never want to experience again. With online schools putting a buffer between people and their education, it was hard to learn things. Racial issues, police brutality, and riots hit our country hard. The world's mental health also struggled, and depression numbers spiked. Everyone wonders why we, and no one has the answer. Of course, there are still things to know about each horrific event, but this was just a small part of 2020. The larger and more critical part of all of this is that we made it. Today in 2021, we are a country that is recovering and learning to grow together. That didn't just happen because one person changed; that happened because everyone wanted change. That took strength, dignity, and faith. Without those three things, who knows what the world could be.  

Works Cited

Ankel, Sophia. ``30 Days That Shook America: Since the Death of George Floyd, the Black Lives Matter Movement Has Already Changed the Country.” Business Insider, 24 June 2020, www.businessinsider.com/13-concrete-changes-sparked-by-george-floyd-protests-so-far-2020-6.

National Institute of Mental Health. “Major Depression.” Nih.gov, Feb. 2019, www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/major-depression.shtml. Accessed 3 Feb. 2021.

 Prothero, Arianna. “Is Online Learning Worse than Being in School? Majority of Teens Say Yes.” Education Week, 18 Sept. 2020, www.edweek.org/leadership/is-online-learning-worse-than-being-in-school-majority-of-teens-say-yes/2020/09.