My Year.

When I think about everything that happened in 2018, I get truly overwhelmed.  At the beginning of 2018, my sister gave me a sweatshirt that said, "This is my year."  I thought about this a lot as the year ended.  Was it my year?  How do I determine that?  What even happened in this year? 

My theme for the year was choosing happiness, something I knew was going to push me in ways I wasn't going to love.  I wanted to make a very concentrated effort to be happy, even when circumstances weren't ideal.  I think I did ok.  I knew it was going to be a hard goal, so I'm fine with just having done ok. 

In a lot of ways, I lived out my wildest dreams in 2018.  I went to Spain for three months to learn a language, something I wanted to do since I was a freshman in college.  I went to Uganda for two weeks and worked with a company to help them get letters of intent for a grant application and met with distribution parters.  I had wanted to do development work since high school, and I wanted to do it in a way that I felt was impactful.  I planned a European trip, and traveled with one of my good friends.  It went flawlessly, and there was something so satisfying of knowing I could do it.  I could navigate five countries without someone holding my hand.  I graduated college, finishing off four years that were filled with things beyond what I could have even dreamed of--an incredible scholarship opportunity, interesting internships, study abroads, great job opportunities, and some lifelong friends.  I'm proud of what I accomplished during my time at BYU, and I am so humbled by the blessings Heavenly Father continued to send my way.  I started my full-time job, something that was unexpectedly interesting and difficult.  I still struggle every day figuring out how to be a full-time employee, but the satisfying work, great team, and excellent company makes it so much easier.  I ran my tenth half marathon, and that just seems really substantial and important.  I'm proud of myself for continually pushing myself, even when it's hard, painful, and never a great time to train for them.  I went through the temple this year, an experience that was so beautiful and an unexpected blessing.  I am still unraveling what that event meant for me and what it continually means for me.  I can sense there so much larger implications for it, and I am excited that I was able to take a step to strengthen my relationship with my Heavenly Father.  I moved four times.  I was a bridesmaid three times (well, mostly three).  I went on hikes by myself.  I went to the Taylor Swift concert.  I had my heartbroken, by so many things and so many people.  I went to New York with my mom.  I still made a lot of cookies and went to a lot of concerts. 

So was it my year?  Yes, I did feel like it was. 

xo. Elise