Come on, December. We’re all rooting for you.

I have not conducted a scientific poll, but I’m willing to bet that for many of us, 2025 has been the latest in a series of terrible years that we all hoped would be slightly less terrible than the one before.

Remember those quaint days of 2020 when we were deep in a pandemic but were pretty sure it was all gonna get better on Jan. 1, 2021? And then five days later, folks were climbing up the Capitol building and constructing gallows out front.

2025 has just added fuel to the dumpster fire. So far this year, everything is very expensive. The government is snatching people off the street. Planes have been falling out the sky. About 300,000 Black women are now unemployed. And the measles are back! Congrats! We went backward!

I would be willing to write off the whole year as the worst, but then I noticed the calendar. We have one whole month left — time for a miracle, something to redeem it.

Having been made a fool of by the last several years, I feel like it’s too much to hope that 2026 is going to be entirely non-sucky. But we can do, like, one month, right?

I kind of think we have to. To paraphrase Baltimore native Adam Duritz, it’ll be a long December, and there’s reason to believe maybe this month will be better than the last 11. Well, that’s not entirely true. There is reason to believe that it’s gonna suck, too. But I choose to believe that it won’t.

So what are the things I’m looking for? Personally, I’d love if nothing else fell apart at my house for the next few weeks. But there are four simple things that would make December better.

For one, don’t be a jerk. Stop recording people in public and posting them on social media for clicks while you make fun of their weight or what they’re wearing. Don’t post hateful clickbait for engagement and then get mad when you get called out. Don’t call immigration officials on brown people. In general, don’t be a terrible human to other humans who are just minding their business.

Secondly, remember that we’re supposed to be celebrating peace on earth and goodwill toward men and everybody else. Be nice to people. Don’t cut in line — we’re all tired, OK? Hold doors. Hold elevators. Tip generously. Donate to your local food pantry. Put your shopping cart back after you’ve unpacked your groceries into your trunk and don’t leave it to ding someone else’s car.

Third, you should compliment someone. You like that stranger’s boots? Tell them. (There’s a Black lady colloquialism where we say, approvingly, “I see you, Boots!”) That’s it. There’s so much hate in the world today. Make someone’s day. It’s that easy.

And finally, do kind things without being asked. Take out the trash. Clear the table. Feed the cat. Put your clothes in the hamper and not on the floor, because it’s right there. (That one’s just for my kid.)

Nothing that happens in December is going to make up for the truly dismal previous 11 months. But maybe we can go out with a bang.

Not an actual one, though. Don’t get any ideas, 2025. We know how you are.