Saturday, December 31, 2016

It’s the last day of 2016! :’) Around December when finals are over and the semester just finished, I’ve gotten some time to relax and really think about my year in 2016. It’s that time to reflect and appreciate all the little moments, achievements/accomplishments, and highlights of the year. What things have I enjoyed, found happiness in, and want to make sure I leave time for in the new year? What are some of my new year’s resolutions and goals?

Biggest events and highlights of this year have definitely been getting accepted into college and actually attending college; just finished my first semester at Cal! College has definitely been a big deal for 2016. Not only that, I will always remember 2016 as the year of my high school graduation, finishing 13 years of public education - what a huge milestone.

Fun senior year activities such as Prom, Disneyland, and Graduation were also definite highlights in May and June that I will remember about 2016. They were filled with good vibes, smiles, and laughter spent with close friends who I had all grown up together with before we all headed our separate ways. Decision day, signing yearbooks, going to the last rally, and enjoying school as a second semester senior will be memories I’ll keep forever.

2016 was also a huge year for politics as it was my first election where I got to vote! Other huge moments for me have been extracting my wisdom teeth on April’s Fools Day. It was right before my spring break so that my gums and teeth could recover over the time off of school. For me, two of my wisdom teeth had already grown out and the other two were still beneath the gums. I remember the whole process only took 15 minutes, but that was because mine was an easier procedure as some of mine only had to be pulled out instead of doing surgery upon (like the bottom two). I actually cried in the first 5 minutes or so because the anesthesia shot that would numb the pain hurt since it was shot in the uvula so I felt like I was choking but the nurse told me that was normal. Then, the surgeon came in and pulled out my upper two wisdom teeth and did surgery to extract the bottom two. For the first two days, my teeth and jaw were sore and there was a lot of bleeding in the gums. All I wanted to do was eat ice cream and watch TV. But after the first few days, they healed on their own. I had a check-up a week after for them to examine the gums.

One of the best vacation places was Universal Studios Hollywood when my family and I drove down to LA over the Fourth of July and the 5th. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter had just opened there so my siblings enjoyed it a lot. Also, just this Monday over winter break we went to SF to visit City Hall (which was closed sadly because it was Christmas Day observed) and the Walt Disney Family Museum. This was a museum dedicated to Walt Disney and his family; it presented his childhood memories, career as an animation artist, and the opening of Disneyland. As my family and I are huge Disney fans, this museum was very worth the visit.

Something interesting this year was that I (finally!) created a Facebook account after much nagging by my friends even though I actually opened it not because of them but because I myself wanted to, so it was not due to peer pressure! Also, I started watching the extremely hilarious and well-loved TV show FRIENDS, which I really really love now. The actors have great chemistry so the characters, Rachel, Ross, Monica, Joey, Chandler, and Phoebe are simply golden when put together in a set. My family and I also watched Zootopia in theatres which was an amazing movie, as Disney movies always are and I've probably rewatched the movie about 11 times by now.

Some of the biggest things I’ve learned this year was to live in the moment and enjoy life right here, right now. I tried not to dwell on the past and worry about the future, and this helped not only during senior year in high school, but it’s also a good thing to remember in everyday life.

I also realized the importance of confidence and having self-confidence. Confidence is not being full of yourself or being arrogant. Confidence is believing in yourself and having faith in your actions; being determined and self-sufficient, not feeling like you have to oblige to others when you know your actions are right. Believing in yourself.

This year I feel like I’ve been both excited and stressed, but probably more excited and I hope I continue to feel that way about college in the upcoming years. I definitely felt excited during senior year as high school was almost over and enjoying all the fun senior trips and activities. But I also felt stressed at the same time before March when waiting to hear back from colleges. In my first semester at Cal, I usually felt in the middle. I like learning and going to class, seeing all my friends easily at college because we pretty much live next door and can hang out whenever and there’s all the food and adventures to do at Berkeley to explore. Stress was common before midterms and finals, but I felt really stressed before midterms especially in October. However, I try to remind myself to remain calm and know that whatever happens on exams, things will be okay. I definitely work really hard to prepare beforehand for tests, midterms and finals, by making sure I do all the homework and understand concepts clearly and thoroughly, reviewing my notes often. But I definitely do hope to keep that feeling of excitement within me and to feel energetic while I’m at college because a lot of people say these will be some of the most fun times of your life.

Advice I would give myself for 2017 is to not worry too much and remember to actually enjoy moments and feel good about everything. Remember to make time for myself and relax a little on Fridays and the weekends. Working hard is definitely important, but taking care of ourselves is important, too. Make time for family and friends and myself. Try new things in 2017, too! Go explore Berkeley more and meet new people. Also, remember to hang out with the right people, the type of friends that I enjoy being around. Some goals for myself in 2017: balance school/grades with self-care/friends + family/enjoy time for myself, eat healthy/exercise, and simply to enjoy life and relax.

Anyways, the 3 words that would describe 2016 for me: celebratory, exciting, and fresh.

Best of luck,

Anita