Things I’m Grateful For In 2016

2016 was a shit show of a year. There’s no two ways about it. So many beloved celebrities and famous figures died. So many wars have been started. So many innocent people caught in the cross-fire. Donald Trump is President-elect. My own government here in the Philippines is doing a piss-poor job of managing the country. There’s a lot to be angry about.

But I was doing some thinking and I realized, while, on a large scale 2016 sucked major balls, personally, the year had some ups to it. And while I in no way want to downplay the absolutely terrible things that happened this year, I also realize that not acknowledging the good things that happened this year does no one any favors. A little gratitude in one’s life is never a bad thing, after all.

1. I found a good job that I really enjoy.

Perhaps the thing I’m most grateful for this 2016. I thought I’d lost my way, but little did I know that there was something much better that the universe had in store for me.

(Related post: 5 Things a Career Crisis Taught Me)

2. I traveled a lot this year.

My love affair with travel was put on hold due to some unforeseen circumstances, but I’m so happy to say I’ve rekindled this relationship. I didn’t go out of the country this year, but tbh, who needs to? Ang ganda ng Pilipinas!

(Related posts: Check out my Travel category!)

3. I started up my yoga practice again.

As with traveling,yoga was also something that got put on hold. This year though, I discovered a studio that was fairly near my place, and with it, I found a warm and welcoming community that opened its arms to experienced yogis, beginners, and those who fell by the wayside. Check them out at Treehouse Yoga PH, and if you live in the area, you really should try out yoga with them. The people there, both instructors and fellow students, are nothing short of amazing.

4. I started this blog.

I wrote in a previous entry that one of my goals before I turned twenty-five was to maintain a blog for a year or more. This coming February, Be Quiet Kate turns one! Hooray!

I don’t know if I can actually do anything to celebrate this birthday though. It’s not as if it’s a big or well-known blog. Maybe I’ll go out for pizza.

(Related posts: 25 Before 25: A Bucket List of Sorts, My name is Kate, and I’m a bad blogger)

5. I rediscovered my love for writing.

Aside from maintaining this blog, I also write this X-men Alternate Timeline fanfiction I started last April (to my everlasting shame – but what can you do? Charles Xavier and Erik Lehnsherr are just so damn shippable), and I’ve also begun work on notes for a novel – which, to be honest, I have no idea what to do with. If any Filipino author out there happens to stumble on my blog, please, point me in the right direction?

But no matter where my writing goes, whether it becomes something I do professionally or remains a pastime, I’ll always be glad I found my way back again.

6.  My boyfriend and I celebrated our fifth anniversary.

We’re now officially well on our way to a decade of being together. It’s gotten to a point where our relatives have started asking the inevitable: “Kailan ang kasal?” (When’s the wedding?)

I’ll let you know when the two of us are no longer struggling millennials balancing work, social life, and graduate school, thanks!

7. I made lots of new friends.

Was 2016 my ultimate peak year of being an extrovert or something? I mean, I know I’m chatty and a social butterfly, but the amount of new friends I made this year was just insane.

Thanks to all these people for sharing the year with me. But none of them know about this blog, so I guess thanking them here is sorta useless.

8. I discovered Hamilton: An American Musical.

WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU HAVEN’T LISTENED TO IT YET?

9. A good friend is on the road to overcoming her depression.

The struggle with depression is not an easy one. I don’t begrudge my friend all the time and effort I and our other friends dedicated to her recovery. I wouldn’t have had it any other way. She’s still on her medication, and of course, she’s still got a long way to go, but she’s in a far better place than she was last year. 2016 was the year my friend started to show some marked improvement in her mental health, and I’ll always be grateful for that.

(Related posts: Kate’s Books: All the Bright Places)

10. I’m alive.

Every day above ground is a good day.

(Related posts: The secret to happiness, The Eternal Millennial Question)

What else made you happy in 2016? What are you grateful for? Let’s offset all the crap that happened with some good thoughts and intentions!

A happy New Year to everyone, and may your 2017 be filled with light, strength, compassion, and kindness!