Live Love Life Leisure

  New Year's Resolutions -  Photo by freestocks.org: https://www.pexels.com Do you like making New Year’s resolutions? But do you sometimes find yourself get stuck even before mid year? If you do, I got you. Well, I used to love crafting mine, imagining a fresh start filled with all the positive energy. Yet, over the years, I started to acknowledge the same pattern repeated: m y resolutions often turned into little more than beautifully penned aspirations in my journal, forgotten weeks later as life swept me away. Funny, though... how each year I’d tell myself, “This time will be different.” But it never was. I don’t know how you see it, but I found myself amusing knowing that I still didn’t give up doing it. I wanted to improve myself, and I knew that I shouldn't play the broken old record. I mean... wouldn't I just be a fool: doing the same thing but expecting different results? I turned to every piece of advice I could find. I attended seminars hosted by inspiring speak...

You are worthy -  Photo by Pavel Danilyuk: https://www.pexels.com As I continue my end-of-year reflection, I want to share a story that has been a significant part of my journey this year. This is a story I’ve written intentionally, not only to share but also to keep as a personal reminder. It’s a story about discovering self-worth, my journey from self-criticism to self-love. *** Three journals from three years ago sat on my desk, their presence raising a question: should I keep them or let them go? A while back, I had discarded one journal because it held nothing of value—no lessons, no insights—only memories I wanted to leave in the past. Using the same reasoning, I wondered if I should do the same with the remaining three. One by one I opened my journal and randomly read some pages. I reckoned that something about my writing had changed. I could see I’d begun to analyze things differently, with more depth. So, I thought those journals felt worth holding onto, at least for now, ...

  One atomic habit Do you practice self-reflection at the end of the year? I do, and it’s something I really enjoy. For the past four years, I’ve been religiously making time to look back on everything that happened in that year—the highs, the lows, and the small wins worth celebrating. It’s my way of appreciating myself and the journey I’ve been on. As I was going through my journal this year, I noticed something interesting. There was one thing I never wrote about. Maybe because it wasn’t something that bothered me a lot to the point where I needed to complain in my journal. However, while trying to look and think back about my small win this year, I realize that it’s worth recognizing as a valuable part of my life journey. It was a small habit—an “atomic habit” to borrow James Clear ’s term—that worked wonders for me. A small win that deserves appreciation: my writing practice. How It Started For the longest time, I always wanted to write a blog. And I sort of did—except I never...

Relax and journal Photo by Katya Wolf: https://www.pexels.com I started December 2024 with reflection and self-evaluation. I picked up my journal to review all the moments from this year. Honestly, I felt a mix of nervousness and anticipation—I was about to take a trip down memory lane, revisiting not just the good times but also the stress, pressure, and challenges I faced. Unlike previous years, this time, I used a different journaling system. I kept a primary journal specifically for recording the lessons I learned along the way. This approach makes it so much easier to revisit and relearn those lessons. It also serves as a comforting reminder whenever I feel low. In a way, it feels like I’m creating a personalized guidebook for my life. As I was reading through my journal, I was struck by how familiar everything felt—almost as if the entries were written in the present moment. Even the lessons I jotted down back in January, nearly a year ago, resonate deeply with what I’m experienc...