Seasons Come and Go

"Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes,

Five hundred twenty-five thousand moments so dear"

- Jonathan Larson

It is that time of the year again, it is the end of December. The holidays came and went and up next is the New Year. It feels like for the last few months everything has been building up to the end of the year and the new year. With the annual build-up, there is the annual "Year in Review." Major platforms all provide their own year in review. Spotify comes out with what you listened to most and what your top artist was. Google does "A Year in Search." Snapchat does a year in photo memories. People love looking back on the year, on all the moments they have had. This year there is a strong feeling when looking back. There is a strong sense of nostalgia, sadness, pride, anger, and more when I look at my personal "Year in Review."

My year was filled with some high highs and some really low lows. I hold immense pride in my work. I know I persevered through so much and accomplished more than I could've ever imagined. I started the year as a recent graduate interning at a company where I was helping produce Broadway shows and working Off-Broadway. As time passed and circumstances changed, I deep dived into my own creativity and began working on YouTube and writing scripts. As I felt like life was becoming more stagnant I found new ways to create. I've developed exciting projects, created a space for my "Thoughts n' Things" and began creating community through my newsletter. I am proud. I am proud of all the work I have done and how I got to this point but, this doesn't cover all the moments I lived.

This past year, I was no stranger to personal crises, moments of despair, moments of joy, moments of excitement, moments of heartbreak, and moments of love. Relationships with others, with my career, or with the world around me changed in ways I didn't expect and when some changes occurred my heart broke. I wasn't prepared for the changes that happened, I had to mourn the dreams I had for my future and start rebuilding an image for my future. This image became less focused on specifics rather focused on the general theme or mantra I want to live by. A part of my heart can still empathize with the pain I felt but, it is clearly stronger now than it was before.

Out of the moments of heartbreak came moments of growth, moments of love and so much more. I have grown closer to friends that I may have never had the chance to. I have weekly rituals that bring a smile to my face whether that be movie night (movies are rarely watched) or book club or a weekly hike. There have been many fond memories formed and I have had the privilege to make them with people that mean so much to me. I also had the privilege to work and create a community online which has brought me so many moments of joy.

The past 525,600 minutes haven't been easy but, they weren't meant to be easy. Life isn't meant to be easy because life will always present challenges regardless of where and when you are. The minutes go by just as fast as the seasons change. In a blink of an eye, winter, spring, summer, and fall would have made their rotation and I will find myself looking back yet again.

In the end, I have to "measure in love."