The one where I turn 29…

29. The last year of being in my 20s begins right in the middle of Victoria’s stringent lockdown in a bid to combat the rising Covid-19 cases. And, like many others, I made the best of my iso birthday via online shopping, take-away food and zoom calls.

As I reminisce over my 20s, I feel a mix of emotions… sad that this will be the last year of being ’20-something’, scared about being THIRTY, amazed I’ve managed to get to this point without too many regrets, hopeful that there are many good experiences to come and grateful for being given so many wonderful people, opportunities and memories thus far.

A lot has happened in the past few years… recovering from some particularly toxic relationships, friendships and co-workers, letting my family in on how I really feel about things and feeling comfortable asking for help, checking in on my general mental health regularly, accepting that no matter how positive I am, some people just aren’t good for me and learning that it’s ok to not compromise on what you believe to be the right thing.

I feel infinitely blessed to have reached to this point in my life, where I can look forward to the next decade of my life with all the strength and wisdom I have gained to date. I am so happy to have married my best friend, someone who is aware of my flaws and is so lovingly accepting of them. I am so blessed to have adopted a puppy, who can always match my crazy and do one better and knows exactly when to sit next to me right before I crumble into tears. I am so proud to have given birth to my beautiful baby, someone I will love unconditionally forever and gives me a reason to be the best version of myself that I can be. I pray that no matter what happens, that they will always remain blessed and happy ♥️

Sentiments aside, something I’ve understood to be paramount in maintaining happiness is self-love. So, as I start my 30th year, here are 3 things I would like to achieve for myself in the next year:

• Finish my Masters at MBS
• Move into a role at work that continues to challenge me further and utilises all the skills I’ve learned to date
• Get back my my fitness to running marathon levels again

While, 2020 has been a gigantic Thanos-sized blip in everyone’s life, here’s hoping for a FAR better year ahead! How hard could it be? Cheers to everyone celebrating their birthdays during this pandemic. Stay safe.