Before anything else, I would like to ask—how have you been? How did the year 2022 go for you? Did you achieve your goals? Have you been focusing on making yourself better? Were you able to enjoy it? Did you experience the highest of highs or the lowest of lows? Did you follow all your last year’s resolutions? Were you able to commit to the promises you kept to yourself and to others? Was 2022 the best year of your life so far? And the most important thing I want to ask—with all the things that happened last year, were you truly and sincerely happy?
For most of us, the New Year is always a fresh new start. We often convince ourselves to leave what doesn’t serve us anymore and let go of anything—even people—that hold us back or have been pulling us down. Declutter, clean our spaces, donate things, rearrange, buy new furniture, and just do a major overhaul of everything we have. We usually feel hopeful whenever we experience something new. That is what the New Year brings to most of us—a beginning, a cheer, a chance.
2022 for me has been a roller coaster of a ride. I had a lot of ups and downs, but I won’t tell which one is dominant. Overall, the year has humbled me in ways I can’t imagine. We often think that we can do everything on our own and that we don’t need anyone’s help. I learned to trust the universe again. It made me re-evaluate my faith and put it to the test.
2022 also gave me a chance to rekindle broken friendships, reconnect to my constants, celebrate the wins of my close friends, expand my circle, and had new really close ones. I had a chance to get back to reading and writing. I read a few books this year and had the chance to get published in a digital magazine. The number of new foods I tasted last year was unbelievable. I am not usually adventurous when it comes to food, but I had the chance to experience new foods and really indulge (Guess what, I gained weight, but no regrets). I also had the chance to focus more on my yoga practice by joining a community; every time I was in the studio, it made me feel happy and zen.
While a lot of positive things happened last 2022, there were also things that tested me in ways I cannot even think I would put myself into. My self-confidence and self-respect went so low that I lost my purpose—I felt like I just existed for the time being. Most of the hurtful things that I experienced were internal; I felt I couldn’t tell anyone, so I just processed it by myself. it’s like bottling up feelings and exploding one day. I fought so hard to win against it.
This just shows that we all have our own journeys. It can be as tough and can tear you to the bone, but there is also an upside to life: We all live in a flawed world. We will be tested again and again.
At the end of the day, here comes the New Year, embracing us all and promising new adventures and struggles, because that’s what makes life exciting. The New Year teaches us not just to be hopeful for the year ahead, but also to be grateful for the year that has passed. We may not have achieved the goals we set, kept the promises we made, commit to the resolutions we listed, and disconnected from the people around us, but one thing is for sure—there will always be something to be thankful for. There are always things that we don’t even notice, there is abundance in the universe, and we just have to change our perspective.
2022 has passed and here comes 2023. May you choose to be happy and grateful, and may this year surprise you to be your best year yet.