Reflections on 2021
What significant life changes happened this year?
On Valentine’s Day, February 14th, I slipped on the ice in my brother’s driveway, severely sprained my right ankle, and dislocated my left shoulder. A week later, I discovered that I also had a broken glenoid fracture, a really terrible break with the dislocation. This event led to almost every other significant change of the year:
Sold my less than one-year-old house in the Austin area
Moved back to College Station
Surgery on my left shoulder
Spent 5 months recuperating with 3 months of physical therapy
New house built in College Station (moved in November)
I accepted a promotion at work, which took me out of the HR rotation program into a role as an Organizational Design Strategist and HR Business Partner for the Corporate Services function. It has been a challenging 8 months learning the role and pivoting to higher visibility work.
What was I most proud of this past year?
I’m proud of my ability to handle a lot of change in a brief period of time without having a nervous breakdown. The first half of this year was physically and emotionally challenging, and at the same time, I got this great promotion at work. Trying to balance my injury and the chaos of my personal life while stepping up at work was exhausting–but I lived through it and came out the other side stronger.
What was the most significant thing you learned this past year?
Learning to ask for help is not a selfish act. I’m not entirely sure why I hate asking for help, but given my injury this year, I required the service of others daily. Asking for and accepting this service was humbling for me. My family was incredibly amazing this year, and I want to give them a huge thank you for the love and service they provided.
Other Questions
What was the price of gas? $2.63
What were my favorite songs/podcasts/books/movies of the year?
Movies: No Time to Die and Dune
Music: Silk & Sonic Album from Bruno Mars and Anderson.Paak, 30 from Adele
Books:
Invisible Women: Exposing Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado-Perez
Atomic Habits by James Clear
I am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes
Podcast: Faith Matters
What was your favorite new experience of the year?
My nephew’s wife, Chrissy, started selling macarons at the local Bryan/College Station farmer’s market this year. I often go as an assistant to help her. I enjoyed going to the markets, talking with Chrissy, and meeting the other vendors. As an introvert, I have enjoyed working from home because I can fully engage with my work with minimal distractions–but going to the farmer’s markets has shown me that I still crave more interactions with others.
What new food did you enjoy this year?
Passion fruit. Chrissy has made several cakes and macarons with passion fruit curd; all have been spectacular.
What new questions do you want to ask in the new year?
How can I be 1% better today? This question I am leveraging from Atomic Habits. James Clear shows that we can achieve amazing things by making small, consistent changes over time. As I often struggle with throwing myself 100% into big projects and then later abandoning them, I appreciate this model for consistent change for radical growth.
Who am I becoming? I am very critical of myself. I’ve often used this critical analysis as a way to fuel my development, but in doing so, I never give credit for what I have accomplished. I want to spend more time focusing on who I want to become and how I’ve grown. Mindful reflection for growth is still a valuable exercise, but not to the detriment of acknowledging the positive.
2021 Goal Check-In
My focus for 2021 was FINISH! The task was supposed to be simple, just finish all remaining projects that have been ongoing for more than a year. I managed to get a few things completed in January, but once my accident hit and I packed up my house (all my belongings were in storage for 9 months), I was stuck, and I accomplished very few things. But for those interested, here is what I finished in 2021:
Saved all my grad schools files out of my school account for future access
Added family photos to FamilySearch.com for other people to access (the project is still ongoing--I have hundreds of photos to catalog and upload)
Purged all old paper files, books, games, and house items and either recycled or donated them
Paid to restore an old harddrive and sorted through the lost data and files
Given all the changes in 2021, I also completed some new projects:
With the help of my friends Julie & Chandra, I took my house decorating to the next level. After an intense five days of shopping, they helped me find decorative items and furniture to turn my new house into a home.
Went through all my cookbooks and created my 2022 calendar of new recipes. The calendar has me making at least 4 new recipes a month next year.
Reorganized my spice cabinet with new jars and labels (thanks to two lovely Christmas presents from my brother Greg and my parents).
Photo Sessions & Editing:
My nephew Rand’s homecoming pictures
My nephew Scott’s graduation from A&M pictures
My brother Garret’s family photos
Alaska cruise & Seattle trip editing (still need to make my travel book)
As a whole, even though 2021 was a difficult year, It was still full of magic, joy, and lots of beautiful memories with family and friends.
How did 2021 go for you?
