After the treacherous year we have had, 2020 has come to an end and 2021 has begun running its course. The past year had left every human on earth in a whirlwind of questions, dead-ends and helplessness, leaving only each other to rely on. 

For myself, I had found a shoulder to rely on with a group of five other senior students helping each other pass the year. Being friends before, this group wasn’t new or unheard of to each other, but it had never reached this deep level of friendship the group had obtained at this point in time.

Consisting of six female seniors – five of them being women of color – this group had managed to guide each other through the 2020 pandemic, the political unrest America is facing at the moment, the start and end of college applications, managing our normal classes in the school year, and our mental health. It was a silver lining to our problems, a place to vent and let ourselves express our feelings – for many of us, this group was the only place we ever did express our true feelings about the events around us. 

We helped each other process the Black Lives Matter movement, our senior year being compromised due to covid, the college application process the class of 2021 had to complete and more – each being a source of stress and worry for us, but we were able to work through these topics together.

“This group chat is full of seniors that help each other cope and lean on each other,” says Borsha Sarker. “We are like a stress ball – we can squeeze each other and feel supported like a stress ball would be to a person.” 

I had the privilege of having companionship even in this tough year, and it has proven to help improve humans lives. “Companionship is a basic human need and establishes a sense of belonging,” says Heritage Healthcare, a at-home-healthcare provider. “Having a companion in life, whether they are a relative, friend, or carer, helps keep the mind active and prevent social isolation.”

“Having someone trustworthy also allows people to have honest conversations about how they’re feeling. Whether its emotion, mental health, or illness, having someone there to talk to can stop people from feeling alone,” Heritage Healthcare continues to say. This can simply be shown in our chat itself – the lonely feeling disappearing and being replaced with an ever-lasting love and sense of friendship between all of us.

When asked about my year, the bad outweighs the good. But the bad can’t be brought up without the good in my life which were these 5 ladies that changed my outlook on a proclaimed horrible year.

 Find your silver lining to 2020, and appreciate it. Use it as an anchor and see the positivity that came amongst the animosity.