There may not be streams of confetti or champagne corks popping, but most of us are looking forward to what 2021 may bring. I mean, it couldn’t be worse than 2020, could it?

Hopes were high as we ushered in 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic quickly dashed any dreams of a happy new year. The year brought cancelled travel plans, periods of prolonged isolation, loss of jobs, not to mention potentially fatal illness.

But the pandemic also helped many of us to appreciate the little things. A new poll suggests COVID-19 has made many Canadians grateful for what they have.

ALSO READ: Poll suggests pandemic made some Canadians more grateful for what they have

“There’s more of a life-threatening dimension for seniors that has made them, made that group disproportionately feel more grateful for what they have in this particular climate,” said Association for Canadian Studies president Jack Jedwab.

And now that the first shipments of vaccines have arrived in the province, there’s hope that life may soon begin to return to something resembling normal.

ALSO READ: B.C. COVID-19 vaccinations reach nearly 12,000 people

The first limited round of vaccinations began this month with health care workers who work in long-term care homes and on the frontlines of COVID-19 response in acute care among the first to receive the vaccine. The vaccines will continue arriving each week in increasing quantities, with targeted deployment for people in additional priority groups.

All of this suggests there is some light at the end of the tunnel. Are you expecting things to be better in 2021? Take our poll and let us know.

Do you have a story tip? Email: vnc.editorial@blackpress.ca.

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