A Year In Summary: 2015
Happy New Year, everyone! December is over, and you all know what that means-- that's right, time for the obligatory end of the year post in which I get weepy and philosophical and talk about how much I love my life and my blog and all you dear, dear readers. (Which I do. Just so you know.)
So let's talk about 2015.
the year I started Chasing Daisies
Biggest one, obviously. That's right, this little mess here has been alive and kicking for nine months, now. Back when I started this thing, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. I'm not going to lie, I still don't. But that's okay, because it's been fun, and while it still is a horrendous mess, it's totally worth it.
Other Blogging Highlights:
I published 48 blog posts and wrote (or started writing) 79.
I followed way more blogs than I'm ever going to try to count.
I followed way more blogs than I'm ever going to try to count.
And just as a matter of interest, Your Favourite Posts: (apparently)
-- I just realized I seem to have a thing for long titles. This could be a problem.
Also, no, you're not hallucinating, THE BLOG JUST GOT A MAKEOVER.
Also, no, you're not hallucinating, THE BLOG JUST GOT A MAKEOVER.
the year I turned sixteen
I never bought into the whole "sweet sixteen" thing. For one thing, my golden birthday was when I was fifteen and I made big deal out of it, and that kind of underscored the excitement of sixteen. For another thing, I really dislike the number sixteen for some reason (I have no idea why). I still don't see anything particularly great about turning sixteen-- so far, it's mostly meant stress.
"Do you have your driver's license yet?" "When are you going to get a job?" "You need to start researching colleges." Apparently I'm supposed to start adulting. Which I'm not happy about, but it's probably good for me.
the year I didn't give up on my novel
I've been rewriting and revising and editing "Splitting Atoms" all year, and by this point, I kinda hate it. I kinda hate it a lot. It's been hard and painful and that editing thing had me crying more than once, but I didn't give up. I've pushed through it (for the most part) and right about now I'm diving into yet another rewrite. Yeah, I don't have any of this figured out and I'm pretty sure I did it horribly wrong, but at least I did it.
Other Writing Highlights
I won NaNo and wrote a painful, scary, creepy story about two-dimensional monsters which pose as shadows. (But shhhh-- spoilers.)
Speaking of that novel, I invented my favourite protagonist I have ever written, and that's kind of a big deal. (Also, my antagonist is pretty cool, too.)
And I actually worked up the courage to share snippets and pictures and generally tell people about my writing, which I was never able to do before.
the year I learned to surrender
Hey, so here's the thing. There's a God who created the entire universe, a God who created me, and quite some time ago I asked this God into my heart and told him that he was my God.
And for years, I've been holding out on him. For years, I've been telling the God who made the planets and keeps Earth from burning up, the God who controls the tides and the seasons, the rain and the pressure of the atmosphere, that he can't control me. I've been acting like I'm the one in charge of my life. I've been fighting him every step of the way and screaming at him when things don't go my way.
I'm still not perfect-- nowhere close-- I'll probably have to learn this same lesson over and over again in the years to come--
But this year I learned that God is doing a better job at running my life than I ever would.
This year I learned that there's no point to being independent if you're miserable in the meantime.
This year I learned that true joy is only found when I obey God and live in accordance with his will, not mine.
This year I learned that God's grace is sufficient to get me through the things I think I can't do, if I just trust and obey him.
This year, especially, I learned that obeying God doesn't make me miss out on the fun I think I'd have otherwise, it's just a different (better) kind of fun.
And 2015 was
the year I had fun
I loved this year. I loved blogging. I loved being fifteen, for as long as it lasted. I loved writing, even when it was hard. I loved growing deeper in my relationship with God.
I made lots of great friends and grew a lot closer to the ones I already had. I partied hard, if infrequently. I started to come out of my shell and get the better of this whole social anxiety thing. I went to camp. I worked a summer job. I kept doing the school thing. I got my learner's permit. I spent a lot of time with my nephews and nieces and other family members.
I had fun. Sure, I didn't love all of it, but I firmly believe it was all worth the bits I did love.
2015 was a great year for me, and I'm so thankful for every minute of it.
What was your greatest accomplishment/event/lesson of 2015? Did you keep any of your New Year's Resolutions? What are you looking forward to in 2016?
Love the new blog design! The header is beautiful. :)
ReplyDeleteHurray for writing accomplishments!
And I'm glad you grew more in God too. That is always a goal, and it's a hard one to keep with all the noise.
Happy New Year!
THANK YOU! I'm so glad you like it! <3 Happy New Year to you!
DeleteYes! It would be great if people stopped asking us if we have our license just because we're teenagers! Lol. I said something to one of my cousins earlier this year about my being seventeen and she said, "And you don't have your license yet?!" And I'm just like, I'm homeschooled, I don't have a job yet, and my only friend has a car... why would I need a license? xD
ReplyDeleteI think one of the most important things I learned this year was to just appreciate and enjoy life. Time goes by SO fast, scary fast, and to waste what I have in each season of life is one of the worst things I can imagine. Every once in a while I just stop and try to soak up my surroundings and try to engrave them into my head for later.
I've also learned to say "I'm sorry", which I believe is a valuable quality to have, and honestly, if I've had any part in making any conversation stressful or mean-spirited, I just feel so much better walking away after I've apologized.
Have a happy New Year! -clinks glass of sparkling grape juice-
Oh, and I love your new blog design! So pretty. :)
I. Know. I'm only just old enough to get my license anyway, and believe it or not, getting it depends on a LOT more people than just me.
DeleteOh, yes. I've been realizing more and more that I need to make the most of every second I have and enjoy it to it's fullest-- but I'm not quite there yet. New Year's Resolution, maybe. xD And saying "sorry" is SO hard, but ultimately SO worth it. *nods*
Thank you so, so much. Cheers!
*offers hugs* I LOVE your new blog design. It's so pretty and makes me happy to see.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you had a great year -- years full of learning are always the best, and I had one of those myself this year. It was rough, and I had my fair share of anxiety too, but look! We made it, and we've got this. I can't wait to see what you blog about and learn this year <3
AGH, thank you! You're so sweet. *returns hugs*
DeleteHey, if everything was easy, we'd never learn anything! Thanks so much for your support. :)
Your new design is beautiful! How did you do it?
ReplyDeleteAnd I love how you recapped your experiences from 2015. I'm still working on learning to surrender, I think. Good luck with your novel! (And by the way I totally have a thing for long post titles too, haha!) :)
Thank you so much!!! Eheh, I went the easy, cheat way and downloaded a free template online. I would never have been able to design this myself. xD
DeleteHaha, surrender took me SO long to learn-- basically the entire year, and I think God was working on it with me back in 2014, too, though I didn't really realize it as such. That to say, it takes awhile to learn anything worth while, but I'm praying for you! Long post titles tend to sound really nice, but they're a pain to type out. :P
Oh my goodness your blog is so pretty. This is kind of the design I wanted for my blog but I don't know how to do it and I don't feel like messing with it. But your's is so pretty and easy to look at and I love it.
ReplyDeleteSounds like you had a great year! And yeah, adulting, why do people expect us to do that already? *shakes head* Crazy peoples.
As for my own year, there was a lot of writing and crippling anxiety and stress and I learned lots but HERE I AM SO I GUESS ALL IS GOOD? Heh.
Aw, thank you! Haha, when I first set up my blog I had the crummiest design EVER and it took nine months before I FINALLY got around to fixing it-- I was just too lazy. :P
DeleteAh, yes, I get the anxiety and the stress. *hugs* But you learned something and YOU SURVIVED so that's a big deal, ammiright? xD
Your new design is gorgeous! Makes me want to overhaul my blog again XD I want some tips from you now. :P
ReplyDeleteThank you!! Uh-- I /still/ have no idea how this whole design thing works, but if you have questions I can TRY to answer them... *laughs nervously*
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