It’s safe to say that 2018 was the best year of my life. So many amazing and wonderful things happened from beginning to end. Like every year, there were also challenges, but I was able to handle them much better this year than I handled much smaller challenges in previous years. This year has felt long to me in the best way; I feel like I’ve had much more than 365 days at this point to learn, grow, practice, and explore. It’s going to be hard to let this year go but I take comfort in knowing that I can continue all the amazing things that I started this year, make future years even better, and look back on the good times from this year whenever I like. There are several awesome moments that stand out when I think back on everything I did, so I’d like to share with you my favorite things from this incredible year.
- Growing a lot as a person. This is only the second year that I’ve seriously focused on personal growth, and I did much more self-improvement work this year than I did last year. They say knowing is half the battle, which is true, but it’s action that gets results. I’ve spent a lot of time this year working on applying what I know wherever I can: taking care of my body, nourishing my soul, feeding my brain, working through my emotions, developing better habits and breaking old ones, improving my communication and interactions with other people, etc. I’m in a much better place overall now than I’ve ever been or ever thought I’d be, and I’m just getting started. I can’t wait to see where I’ll go as I continue working on this stuff and getting better one step at a time.
- Reading and learning so much new and useful stuff. I’ve probably read more books this year than in any other year. Except for my annual reading of How to Win Friends and Influence People, every book I read was one that I either started at some point in the past but never finished or had never read before this year. Most of the books I’ve read this year, several of which are among my all-time favorite books, have been practical, self-improvement books with lessons that have vastly improved the quality of my life since I started putting them into practice. I’ve also read a few books that just looked interesting and gave me an enjoyable evening even if they didn’t give me any useful life hacks. Reading so many great, insightful books has given me a better understanding of myself, other people, and the world in which we live; I can see connections between things that I never noticed before and navigate each day more smoothly and easily than I could before. I’ve still got a few dozen books on my shelf to read and I have more on my list to get as I work through those, so I’ll be reading and learning for the rest of my life.
- Going on an amazing day trip. This was the most enjoyable day trip I’ve ever been on. I went with a group of friends to Interlachen, Florida to pick blueberries in the morning. After that, we stopped off in Palatka for a nice lunch. We finished by walking around St. Augustine, exploring some of the many cool sights there, and doing a bit of dancing. That whole day was relaxing, laid back, and full of one pleasant experience after another. I couldn’t have asked for a nicer day.
- Successfully organizing several fun events. Though I’ve organized events in the past, this was by far my most ambitious year for event planning. I successfully planned and carried out 5 events this year: a beach trip toward the end of summer, a watch party for the movie Airplane!, an escape room, an afternoon of juggling in the park on World Juggling Day, and a Secret Santa gift exchange. I was the primary organizer for each of those events, but they would have fallen flat without everyone who went to them. I think more people are interested in going to events than they are in planning them, so I’m glad I took the initiative and got the ball rolling on them. They each made for some fun times and great memories that I’ll treasure for years, and they were great practice for some bigger, more ambitious events and projects that I plan to bring to fruition in my life.
- Going on the Classic City Swing trip. By far the best, smoothest trip I’ve ever been on. I loved going to Classic City Swing 7, swing dancing, learning some cool new things, enjoying 6 days off of work, and spending time with friends both in Athens and in Atlanta. I couldn’t have asked for a better vacation and I’m so glad I decided to go.
- Using Duolingo for over 300 days to learn Spanish. This is the longest stretch of time that I’ve consistently worked on learning another language. I’m far from fluent in Spanish, but I’m more comfortable with the language now than I’ve ever been before. Working with Duolingo has given me a solid foundation that I’m sure will prove useful as I continue practicing and steadily improving.
- Starting and sticking to my blog. It’s hard to believe that I’ve only been doing this since midway through August and I’m amazed that I’ve been able to put up a new post every day. This has been an incredible journey thus far for several reasons. In addition to the great feedback I get about the blog from people I know in real life, I think it’s made me a better, more creative writer. Having to constantly think up and write out new ideas has definitely improved my writing process and speed and streamlined my thinking. I think it’s improved the quality of my writing as well. Additionally, I love sharing my ideas with other people and seeing the things that others have been thinking but never mentioned to me until they read about them on my blog. Starting my blog was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made and I’m going to keep it going as long as I can.
- Enjoying a wonderful Christmas. Christmas is the biggest holiday of the year that I celebrate and this was the best in recent memory. I loved getting to spend a day resting, spending time with family, and trying out my new stuff. And, since it fell on a Tuesday this year and I have Wednesdays off, I got to have an extra day of rest after the big day itself. It’s rare for me to get two days off in a row, so this was a special treat. I can’t remember ever having a bad Christmas but I also can’t remember having one that went as smoothly as this one. It gave me a great bit of time to rest and reset toward the end of this incredible year.