2017 in Review

2017 was not my best year. I would go so far as to say that it was one of the worst years I've ever actually had. It took a turn for the better towards the end, but I was still very glad to see the back of it.

January - Sadly, on January 3rd, my dog passed away. He was 6 years old and had had respiratory issues for a while that he was on daily medication for. He went peacefully in his sleep, with his best friend, our other dog, at his side. This did not dull the grief, but now I am grateful that his death was peaceful and he was in his home. Also in January I lost the job I had worked at for two seasons, and was unemployed for unforeseeable future for the first time in two years.

February - February 11th marked the 10 year anniversary of my Grandad's death. This was a hard day, as it always is, but in 2017 I decided that it was okay to allow myself this one day a year to grief, and allow myself to feel sad. This is one of the biggest acts of self care I have ever done. February 25th was the first time I have ever felt immense pride for a partner. I watched my ex boyfriend and his band perform at a small festival, and for the first time was able to see how incredibly talented he is. The feeling of watching strangers compliment his achievements still warms my soul.

March - Throughout March I helped organise, and took part in, my graduate conference. This was a pretty stressful task, between creating my own presentation and speech, and helping organise and set up the conference, I barely found time to breathe. On the day, I had to navigate a barely familiar town, and then present my dissertation research for the rest of my course mates. This day was one of the worst for me, but reflecting on the train home I felt like I'd accomplished something huge. Sadly I failed the conference module of my degree (*facepalm*) but in hindsight I am still proud of myself.

April - On April 6th my relationship ended. It was sudden, and though the relationship was short, it threw me. Today me and my ex are best friends, and we talk every day. This is the first time I realised, and accepted, that sometimes people are better just as friends.

May - I got a new puppy! His name is Kane, and he is a giant boy. At the date of writing this I think he is 10 months old, and already he swamps our older dog. He has so much energy, which isn't always a good thing, but he also has so much (sometimes too much) love.

June/July - These months were quiet, for the most part. For the first time in my life I remained single for more than a few weeks, and focused on things other than a relationship. This is when the largest amount of research was done for my dissertation, so I spent most days in the library surrounds by articles and books, but still desperately searching for more. Around this time, a terrible thing happened, that while I'm not ready to speak about it I'm finally moving on from.

August - I met my new partner. We walked his dog and I appreciated the beauty of taking things slow for once.

September - I handed in my dissertation in September, and for the first time in my academic life the end was in sight. I was utterly terrified, like beyond belief. But my hand in day was one of the best I've ever had, for the first time in my life I felt like I had accomplished something big, and holding my finished dissertation was a little bit emotional, if I'm being honest.

October - Unbeknown to me on October 31st the ever ominous Board decided that I was indeed, a Master of the Arts. I have no idea who is on this board, but I imagine them all as being some kind of omniscient and benevolent beings who decide who is and isn't worthy of their degree. Luckily, they deemed me worthy.

November/December - Apart from the obvious festivities these months were also quiet. New Years Eve became a turning point for me, the first in years that I hadn't spent upset, and it's filled me with optimism. My partner and I made a lot of plans for the new year, and we're both excited about carrying them out and having lots of adventures.

I am happy.