Reflecting on 2015 - one of my most memorable years
12:02 am
Hi beautiful people!
I've been gone a while.. I know.. Sorry..! I had a busy end to the year, more than anticipated. In that time I also had my graduation and went on holiday :) I celebrated New Year's Eve away from the UK for the first time and attended a very big family wedding. And now I am back to a 'normal' routine.
HAPPY NEW YEAR! I'm sure many people have already said this, but, 2015 went SO fast. One moment I was living up North studying hard everyday.. and then the next I am back in the Midlands having a much more chilled life.
2015 has been one of my favourite years. Possibly one of the best! I am using this post to be more like a diary-entry for me to look back on. So be prepared, it's going to be intense and quite long! Last year I went through a lot of growth, met some incredible people, learnt so much, and had so much to reflect on. I've made some genuine and true friends who I love and cherish very much. I had the best birthday I could have asked for, which was celebrated more than once with friends and family, in more than one country. I became an auntie for the first time to a beautiful girl, spontaneously had my hair cut to my shoulders (it was down to my hips at the start of the year!), got my second degree, and wore my first ever sari (eek! Haha). That's a brief summary of only some of the exciting bits! :)
I managed to stay fit and active most of the year, and kept a fairly healthy diet. As a person I became more appreciative of the present, more understanding and patient, more forgiving, and more confident within myself and my abilities. I realised some things about myself too, which for me is a big part of growing up - getting to know who you are. For starters, I realised that I am able to adapt and adjust to a new place on my own and happily live independently. I discovered that I am much more resilient and stronger than I ever thought. I also realised that I am not a very judgemental person - which I think is a good trait! I accept people for who they are - it's their life to make their own decisions - I can only support and help when needed. Finally, I realised that I am grateful for any negative experiences I went through, because even though they were horrible at the time, they have made me the person I am today (and I like that person haha). I think coming to that realisation felt like I was rid of so much underlying stress.
I have so much to be thankful about. I am a lucky girl, and I am very grateful for everything. We all go through tough times but what is important is to stay positive and keep your head held high. I know this is easier said than done, that's why I find that keeping your loved ones near you is the best support.
As 2015 was such an important year in my life, I felt it would be appropriate to share three things I learnt last year:
1) We should not base our happiness on something that we may lose.
Often we place so much importance into some thing/place/person that may be only temporarily present in our life. Therefore, when this thing/place/person is taken away from us, or we distance ourselves from it, we experience pain and sadness. Sadness is often a result of having memories of happiness. When we remember good times and how we cannot experience that same time again, we can feel sad. That said, if we give such times less importance and accept that they are/were good in the moment, we can be less stressed in the future. Accept something for what it is right now, and enjoy that moment, but always remember that it may not last forever. No one knows what the future holds, so don't focus your happiness on something you may lose. Live in the present, enjoy being happy with what is in your life right now but don't let the absence of that change your life for the worse.
2) Just because you have a good heart, it doesn't mean everyone else does too.
The world is not full of good people. Unfortunately, not very nice people exist too. People can lie and be dishonest when it suits them. People can be selfish. People can be deceiving. What you see is not always what someone's true identity is. Remember that and you're set for life.
3) It is okay to change.
Without change we can't possibly grow into better people. That's why, we should embrace change. We go through so many different experiences and so much happens in our lives. If our experiences didn't affect us enough and make us change, what would be the point of them? Every experience will help you in some way to become a stronger and wiser person and make better decisions in the future (hopefully). Everything happens for a reason. We make mistakes and learn from them - that helps carve us into a better version of ourselves. That means we change.. which is a good thing. If someone says to you "you've changed", don't let that be a bad thing. Yes, you have changed. Of course you have. You've developed as an individual. And that's what life is about.
What sort of a photo would be appropriate for such a post? Ah, well, seeing as I only graduated last month and it was one of my big highlights for 2015, I'll post a photo of that :P
Now you're probably thinking, do I have any new years resolutions that I'm going to talk about? Well, the answer is no. I personally don't think that just because the date has changed it means I should change drastically as a person and what I am doing. I want to be constantly growing, evolving and improving myself. I don't need a new year to let me do that. I have life goals in general, not ones that I specifically need to do just because it is 2016. With that said, I don't think it's bad to have new years resolutions - it's great when people do, but this is just me and what I am doing this year. It is partly because I am (thankfully) quite content with where I am in my life at present. There is nothing majorly different that I need to do that I wasn't already in 2015 to achieve my current goals. I more hope that I can continue how my life was progressing last year, and excel more at whatever I am doing :)
2016 has a lot to live up to.. Let's see what this year holds for all of us :) That's all for now! I'd love to know how you reflect on your year. What key things did you learn in 2015?
Lots of love,
Ayesha xxx
P.S. I also discovered that I am brave and no longer as scared when watching horror movies! This was not entirely true at the start of the year :P I can now watch horror movies alone and be fine. Yay :D
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4 comments
Aw I'm glad 2015's been such a positive year for you! Congrats on your graduation :) I totally agree that change can be a good thing - how can we learn and grow as a person if things always stay the same?
ReplyDeleteHelen xx
helsyeah.co.uk
Hey! Love your blog post!!! It does inspire to reflect on one's achievements and evolution. It is crazy how personality, attitude, situation can change in only one year. After all, one year is not that little and given a bit of initiative, you can learn and experience a lot of wonderful (maybe not as wonderful, but still good to learn from) things!
ReplyDeleteIt's ok to get swept away, we can't document every moment of our lives that would be ridiculous! I agree 2015 literally slipped by, I honestly can't believe how a whole year of my life flew by so quick, I hope 2016 brings you much happiness :)
ReplyDeleteMeme x
http://www.thedayinthelifeof.co.uk
Firstly a MASSIVE congratulations on graduating my love <3!!
ReplyDelete-I agree 100% with everything you have said. We often think that because we have kind hearts that others do too, however that's not the case. The world is a nasty place and it's something I realise in 2015. However the world can also be a very positive and happy place. There's good and bad in everything- I guess that is life :)
I hope 2016 is your year and may Allah (swt) bless your year full of happiness :)
Ramsha | Rose
xxx
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