Twenty-Twenty-Two; the two-edged year.
The writing of this year’s review was a last-minute decision. I didn’t think I’d get to write one. Yesterday, I thought about how much has happened in my life this year. ‘Why not document?’, I told myself.
Let’s dive in, alright?
This was the year I learned to live intentionally. It wasn’t something I had planned. Life happened as you would expect and I got into a very deep mental pothole. To get out of this pit, making myself happy every day became a necessity for survival. To stay alive, I needed to LIVE!
I saw this tweet somewhere. And it is the best description I have seen for my year. I started the year on a high note and didn’t realize some dark clouds were ahead. But even when the gloom hit me, I blossomed amidst it.
THE GLOOM
I never hated the concept of work as much as I did this year. It felt like I was drowning, with no help in sight. After several self-care measures and the love of people around me, I started swimming again. As time went by, work became tedious, exhausting, and less exciting by the day.
What used to give me joy started giving me palpitations. Burnout became a constant order of my day.
Am I over this phase? I’d say not fully. However, I have passed the drowning phase. And right now, I’m only trying to stay afloat. As well as saying ‘No’ to sinking again.
Another gloomy thing about the year was that I got hurt emotionally. I had a big cut. This wound took the whole second half of the year to heal. You probably guessed what already, right?
Yes, man issues it was.
I shed dripping, hot, and premium tears because of love this year. I’m glad that this phase is past me and that I can now laugh about it. Hahahaha
Moving on… This year again, I got plenty of ‘ela’ for the things I applied to. The rejections were brutal, I kid you not. In fact, at some point, I paused applying, to save my mental health. But will I give up? Certainly not!
Also, this year, I didn’t hit some of my personal development goals. I was so drowned with work and life, that I barely had time to develop and improve on certain areas I had outlined.
THE BLOSSOMING
I had many first times this year. This is a summary of my year in WINS.
Significantly, this year, I LIVED. I have never been more intentional about living than I was this year.
I figured that whenever I dwelt more on the negative things happening in my life, I am making the day less memorable. So, I took each day as it came, and made the most of the days.
I visited local places on my bucket list, made memories, got the things I craved, and enjoyed myself so much. I started to take my aesthetics a bit more seriously too. I started my skincare journey and it has been a plus to my lif as a whole. I also had my first vacation outside of this bustling megacity — Lagos. Baby steps, yes? Nigeria today, Seychelles tomorrow. Gloraayyy!
One of my greatest wins this year is the friendships I nurtured. Which paid off, seeing how my friends showed up for me at so many points this year. People carried me on their backs when I didn’t have the strength to stand and walk on my own. I’m thankful for the friendship that grew and bloomed. A special shout-out to these amazing friends — Zoe, Bidemi, Ifeoluwa, Tosin, and Emmanuel.
Money matters — I met and surpassed my savings goal for the year. Hearty cheers to me! It came at a cost though. I had to close my eyes to the new hair and the plenty of dresses I wanted. 😂
Work-wise, my capacity increased this year. I got promoted at work, which meant more things to be responsible for. I was scared of the responsibilities at first because it didn’t seem like I could handle them. I even tweeted at the time.
Looking back now, I think I did great at them. I got recognized for my work, by my colleagues and the management team a couple of times. There’ll always be room for improvement anyway.
My local church- Oikia Christian Center, was a big part of my year. Whenever I count my blessings, I count my local church, my pastors, and my church family twice.
Wholesome community. Wholesome people.
After much anxiety and panic episodes later, I’m just glad the year twenty-twenty-two has closed out already.
Overall, I’m grateful for all the people God used for me this year. I’m grateful for my family.
I’m grateful for friends. I’m grateful for the new people I met. I’m grateful for the people that stuck.
Right now, I’m happy, content, and excited about the new year. I know it’ll be bigger, better, and brighter. So, I am pumped already!
Edited by: Oluwasanmi Adebayo
