And we’ve reached the end of the year. I know everyone’s saying it, BUT it really did go by fast. To be honest, I’m still stuck in 2019 because 2020 actually never happened and you can argue with ya momma about it!
We are days away from 2022 and like most folks, I’m working on my plans for the upcoming year. 2021 had no goals besides trying to reconcile 2020 even though it still doesn’t feel real. It was a year of never-ending historic events that will be debated and dissected for decades to come and I’m still trying to process it all. I spend much of this year getting back into my pre-pandemic routine; going to work in person, taking my kid to school, and basic human interaction, but it was weird. The powers that be wanted us to forget what happened and get back to life as normal, but that has been such a struggle for me. How does one get back to “normal” after a year of utter un-normalness? How do we forget the images of places like Italy and NYC where it seemed people were dying by the second? How do we make up for a year of lost memories with loved ones? How do we reconcile the racial injustices on full display? 2020 was traumatic and nearly two years later, I’m still finding it hard to grapple with. Not only did I have to get back to normal; whatever that means, it left me reevaluating humanity as a whole. I mean I’ve known piss poor humans existed BUT damn I didn’t know how many were walking around and some of them I knew on a personal level. It was hard to come to terms with distancing myself from people who I’ve known for years that were just off in left-field somewhere. I do however consider myself lucky in that regard; I only got rid of a few FB friends but hearing the stories of families being absolutely destroyed by 2020 has been gut-wrenching, to say the least.
And while 2021 was just me trying to regroup, it did have some high points. I had a reel go insanely viral that led to an invitation to be in a documentary, gain a wider audience and speak on a panel. I finally figured out the direction I want to take my platform; I’d been struggling with it for some time and ended the year with pinning an article for the Coveteur and a cool little something in the works that I’m not ready to talk about but can’t wait to share! So I’m excited to see how my 2022 shakes out.
I’ve long stopped setting New Years Resolutions and lean more into setting a yearly intention, creating goals that fall into said intention, and breaking my year into four quarters to achieve those goals. I use a planner from a woman-owned company STIL that has a planner for quarterly goal setting and it’s great. I would always get overwhelmed at trying to look at my year in a glace all at once and after a few months would give up but once I broke my year into three-month chunks, I felt like I could keep up. I started using this planner at the height of the pandemic and when it was time for me to get back into the swing of things, it gave me a sense of calm. If you’re in that market for a planner, I highly recommend it.
Doen Cecily Dress – gifted (similar style) || Vintage Cowboy Boots (similar styles here & here)
While I’m not quite set on my 2022 intention, my goals are and to build on some of the things that happened this year. I want to write more here and for publications, grow my platform, and enjoy the year; after a year of trying to regain my footing, I think I should. And while I take the last few days of 2021 to plan out my 2022, there is one major event that is looming in the wings…..2022 is the year I turn 30 plus 10 so that’s exciting and scary all at the same time but if you stop getting older that means your dead, so I guess I’ll embrace it.
Wishing you all the best in 2022!
XOXO,
Shanna