16 Things I Learned in 2016
- priscillawrites
- Jan 2, 2017
- 3 min read
Well, here we are. 2017. Honestly, the past few days have had me feeling like time is running at full speed and just dragging me along with it. But no matter how I feel, 2017 is officially here. And despite the strangeness and quickness of 2016, I think I’m ready for it.
There’s something magical about the turn of a new year. It gives people permission to dream, to make plans, to believe in hope and strive for change. I’ve definitely got some things in mind that I want to focus on this year (not sure if I’ll be calling them resolutions, but we’ll see). For now, though, I’ve been spending some time trying to catch my breath and reflect a little on the past year.
2016 was definitely a strange one. I’ve heard such mixed opinions from people about it, and I have a lot of my own mixed opinions as well. But one thing I do know about 2016 is that it taught me a lot of things.
These are just a few of them…
1. A badly written first draft is better than a nonexistent one. Perfectionism is a paralyzing thing that will rob you of your creativity, if you let it.
- A year of writing and rewriting my novel
2. Nine times out of ten, people's insensitivity and unkindness comes from their own fears and insecurities and has nothing to do with you.
- Weekends working retail
3. The greatest luxury in a foreign city isn’t an expensive meal or fancy shopping trip but a hot shower and a comfy bed.
- Booking a hotel in Chelsea, NY after staying at the weirdest AirBnB
4. Your identity is so much more than your mistakes or other people’s opinions of you.
- A character from my novel
5. Comparison is a lie that will try to make you want more for all the wrong reasons, no matter how blessed you already are.
- My Instagram feed
6. Building walls around yourself might keep the bad stuff away, but it also keeps the good stuff out.
- Life in general
7. Maturity and humility build unity. Trying to look cool and impress others doesn’t.
- The awesome volunteer team I serve with at church
8. God is longing to show His love to the hurting, the broken, and the outcasts of society. And He wants to use us to do it, if we’ll let Him.
- The homeless man I prayed with during a mission trip to LA.
9. There are always going to be people who choose the way of hatred and prejudice. The way we fight back is by being kind and open-minded.
- The entire U.S. presidential elections
10. Success isn't a given, no matter how far ahead you think you already are.
- The Chicago Cubs winning the World Series
11. You’re always capable of at least a little bit more than you think you are.
- Literally every run I attempted this year
12. Most dreams worth dreaming will require you to fail over and over again and then get back up, over and over again.
- The movie La La Land (also my favorite movie of the year)
13. Just because something you were afraid of happened doesn't mean you should let fear finish the rest of the story.
- Spending a week with a family member at the hospital
14. Being a leader isn’t about having a title but about having a purpose that in the end really has nothing to do with you.
- A leadership class I took at church
15. If you're not patient and kind and forgiving with your family as a single person, you're not going to magically turn into someone patient and kind and forgiving with your future spouse.
- Contemplating the single life
16. God loves to meet us at the terrifying ledges of our lives, when we're not sure what's coming next or how we'll make it through.
- Facing new and familiar uncertainties
Here’s to 2017, and the many lessons it’s sure to teach us. Happy New Year :)