What a year. I haven’t written a year-end retrospective in awhile, the last one was on 2018. But there is half an hour to go until the new year and I wanted to have something down for the books.

The years in between then and now were not my favorite. Too much heartbreak (2019), too much pandemic (2020-2021), too many struggles with identity and self (always ongoing, but achieving good progress).

But 2022? 2022… was a really good year for me. I’m too lazy to write a full post but here are some highlights:

  • I’m genuinely happy. Life is good!
    • 3 years of therapy has been slowly paying off, I am so much more at peace now. There’s always something to work on, but it feels good to know that change is possible.
  • Put a lot of effort into existing and new friendships.
    • I have such awesome friends!!!
    • I spent a lot of time learning how to have healthy friendships, practising voicing my needs and setting boundaries, but most importantly, identifying the type of friendships I want.
  • Spent more time outside of tech circles, confirming that my identity does not be tied to being a technologist, and it’s perfectly acceptable to not code 24/7.
    • I had forgotten that there are so many different ways to live a life back when I only spent time within tech culture.
  • Indulged in a lot of creative hobbies such as jewelry, dolls and perfume – it’s so fun to just do the stuff and finding communities of people who like the same stuff!
    • Made lots of jewelry for friends, family and strangers. Thank you all for your trust and giving my shiny creations a home!

It’s been awhile since I have felt so full of optimism – a moment worth preserving.

-S