The year is winding up again. Please don’t ask, “When did it start?” Or say, “How time flies” and “It went by so fast,” because it did not. I was and I am still aware of every passing minute of each day. It’s been a really long year, and if I may, the hardest one yet. I know when looking back from the future, this will probably be nothing, but for now I think we can acknowledge that this drained us. Maybe it’s wrong to rope you into this shared experience, and you had a really good year. If that is the case, I am so happy that we were not all dealt the same hand. Because of you, we have hope that it will be better.

For those of us who went through a lot, a lot went through us or are still presently going through it. You were not fighting alone. I know it looked like it, but it’s not true. It was you, me, and a million others trying to stay grounded while taking on new challenges and charting new territories. We still have some days left, which is usually a time for reflection. Good or bad, you made it to the end and are about to start a new one.

This is also around the time I decided to start writing; I had posted my lessons and reflections for each month of the year. People told me it made so much sense and that I shouldn’t restrict it to just once a year. Looking back now, I am so glad I took the advice because, on some days this year, the only thing that carried me through were my old articles. I do want to give you a detailed rundown of everything, and maybe I will cover it over the next couple of weeks.

For now, I want to simply be vulnerable and admit that I almost gave up. I felt like I didn’t deserve the pain and disappointments. I was so drained because nothing seemed to be working. I would fake smile through moments, but what I really wanted was to scream and weep. Through all of this, I had to keep showing up every day because that’s what adults do. I regretted some of my decisions, and I had some hopeless days. Surviving was the only thing I could manage, but I was somehow still failing at it.

Maybe you were me on some days, or all through the year; I want you to know that I am so proud you pulled through. It’s easy to only point out where you failed or criticize how you handled every curveball life threw at you. But I want you to take the harder route and see two key takeaways. One, you didn’t give up on life. Two, life didn’t seem to give you a breather.

I understand that some things were more than you could handle, and you chose to let them go. But you didn’t give in on the most important thing: your life. I also know problems never seem to end, but I don’t think that when you solved one problem, you got two for free before now. It felt like there was no rest, and being at true peace seemed impossible.

Still, on both counts, you made it through. I am happy that when I count my losses this year, you’re not one of them. You did your best, and you’re still seeing it through to the end. You have done really well. So relax your shoulders, unclench your jaw, and take a deep breath. It was a hard one, but you have proved yet again that you’re the stronger one. Keep going.

Song of the moment – Sweet Home by Anendlessocean. Wishing you joyous holidays and a wonderful new year🥳🥰