Dear 2020: Looking Forward With Hope

In our ‘Dear 2020' series, students of SIM pen their heartfelt letters as they share their personal struggles and joys of what has been an unprecedented year.



Dear 2020,

“Experience is the hardest kind of teacher. It gives you the test first and the lesson afterwards.” That's a quote by Oscar Wilde which I have found to ring true.

Life before you was different, everything feels systematic and foreign now, whether it is going to school to learn or going to a restaurant to buy a meal. Since you came, things have changed. This year has been like a rollercoaster ride that I was forced to sit in without knowing when it ends. However, with every tunnel, there's a light at the end of it and I see new opportunities ahead.

When COVID-19 began, my friends and I knew that we would be spending a lot of time by ourselves. As we switched to online classes, it became more challenging for me. It was really difficult to learn with the reduced interactions. It was much easier when I could ask my lecturer questions face-to-face right after lectures or even have a chat with other students.


My friends and I after our Business Communications presentation.

However, you have also given me a chance to change. I have swapped my extroverted lifestyle for a more introverted one. I have also learned to become more introspective and spend more time reflecting on who I think I am as a person and what I want to achieve.  From being a fitness enthusiast, I now prefer online gaming and spend my time binge-watching K-dramas on Netflix. However, I still do make time for exercises by playing sports.

Being an international student, I haven't been able to visit my family back home in Laos. This nine-month period has been the longest time I have lived apart from my family. Yet, you have given me the determination to stay in constant contact with them. This makes us more appreciative of the quality time and bond that we share as a family. We constantly worry about each other and hope to see each other soon.

While, the COVID-19 virus has caused many disruptions, it has not hindered me from making more friends. Having begun my bachelor's programme this year, I have had the opportunity to meet more people virtually and I have also been able to meet them in person and play basketball.

As you come to an end, I really do hope that I can meet with my family soon and resume classes back again. I also look forward to having mala on campus with my friends that I dearly miss.

While many feel this has been distressing season, some others choose to see you as an experience of a lifetime. After all, life is never a straight line. May all the tears that we have shed this year, water the seeds of hope in the year to come.

Yours Sincerely,
Jay