Looking at the year 2020 always seemed like a fantasy, something far and distant from the present, but as the 2010s are ending, we are forced to confront the reality that a new decade is about to begin. Whenever the new year is approaching, there is always a sense of excitement, of new promise, or a possible change. But this time it’s different, as there is a sense of sadness, and presence of nostalgia. Saying goodbye to this decade means saying goodbye to our childhood and growing up.
These last ten years were years of growth. We entered 2010 as children, and are now entering 2020, with the knowledge, experience, passion, and skills that will shape our lives more than we can ever know. The reason it is so incredibly hard to say goodbye this time around is because we want to hold on to that childhood wonder for as long as possible. In this last decade, we went from being middle schoolers to high school graduates to college kids trying to find our place in the world. We had first loves, made so many mistakes, developed passion and drive that led to aspirations, and boy have we learned.
We’ve learned what it means to be a teenager in a world that relies so heavily on technology and social media. We’ve learned the importance of standing up for what is right and to never give up on your beliefs even when everything else tells you to stop fighting. We have gone through tragedy, more than any generation should ever have to go through. But it only fueled us to grow stronger. We transformed that fear into motivation and drive to build a better country and a better world. We have taught others that a bunch of teenagers are sometimes much more capable than the government. We constructed rallies outside the capital, and we are still fighting.
This is the decade we found our voices. We found out the meaning of the human experience: the good, the bad, all of it. We’ve learned the importance art has on a society and fell deeply in love with movies, music, artists, and literature. We were moved by the beauty of the human experience. The 2010s will always have a special place in all of our hearts, one we will never forget, but as we move forward we take all of the experiences and knowledge from this decade and we cultivate it into something special. Something that one day will move and drive a new generation.