Year-End Reflection

Goodbye, December!

For this month’s blog post, I decided I’d honestly just reflect on some of the biggest takeaways from this year for me. I am so excited to let you all in (as I always am) on a small portion of my experience with 2021; a few things this year has taught me, for a lack of better words. As this is scheduled to be the last blog post of the year, I am beyond thankful for you!! We started this thing 6 months ago and each month, I am incredibly encouraged to keep going…because of you, my dear readers. This blog will serve as a year-end reflection for myself and may or may not follow the perfect “intro, three points, and conclusion” format so brace yourselves 

Consistency is Important

As I sit and reflect on 2021, I would tag consistency as the word for my year. After giving birth to my daughter, I found myself extremely motivated to not only start but CONTINUE doing everything I once talked about. It feels amazing to follow through with things these days and I have my baby girl to thank for motivating me to keep my word to myself in every area. As cliché as it may sound, you’ll never truly appreciate growth if you stop before it “gets good”. This year has shown me that and by CONSISTENTLY going after my goals, I’ve grown so much and am much closer to where I want to be. I owe it to myself, and this year has shown me that if nothing else.

Balance is KEY

As a new author, mom, fiancée, friend, and many other things, I’ve found myself exhausted and extremely overwhelmed this year more times than I can count. I’ve even wrestled with what some may call “mom guilt”, meaning I felt like I wasn’t spending enough time with my daughter if I decided to work on my blog or like I wasn’t spending enough time contributing to the wellbeing of our (my fiancé and I) relationship because of, well…motherhood. HOT MESS EXPRESS. I would agree that I am still wrapping my mind around the fact that it is OK to take things one day, hour, MINUTE at a time. I feel like I’ve groomed myself to think that everything must be done at once (and perfectly) but the older that I’ve gotten, and more so this year, I’ve learned that THAT is essentially impossible. It has been a refreshing task teaching myself what a healthy balance looks like, and I’m elated to create healthier habits as I am learning EVERYDAY how to effectively wear each hat.

Passions can be used for PURPOSE

I can confidently say that this year, I found my purpose. This year is the first of many years where I felt like I was able to truly channel a few passions of mine into something purposeful; this safe space. I have always been passionate about SO much. It even got to the point where I would get discouraged because I felt like finding purpose meant that ONE passion would be the conduit and that all others had to fall by the wayside. This year, I’ve learned that THAT doesn’t have to be the narrative and that I can use each passion for one great purpose. As I continue to reflect on this year, I am reminded that this purpose thing comes with an undying fire. This undying fire, although sometimes brighter than others, WILL NOT allow me to quit. I’ve learned that while walking in purpose, that fire WILL BE challenged. These challenges may cause me to question my direction, but I now understand that the impact of my purpose is far greater than any insecurity.

I am insanely proud of me.

Anyway, I won’t “reflect” you to death, but I did want to informally share some of the things that 2021 revealed. It is my hope that you take a moment to reflect on the good that this year has brought you. I do understand that we are living in unprecedented times but if you are reading this, you have a lot to be thankful for.

Blessings, Love, and Light

Christiauna L. Simmons