2008 Wrap-Up

2008 was a bittersweet year for me, but aren't most years? Full of highs and lows, losses and gains. What a bunch of cheesy clichés, but that's life.

I lost two influential family members in 2008. My great-aunt Lillian passed away in January. She, along with everyone else in my family, was so supportive and encouraging of all of my endeavors. She was such a sweet lady, and I am so grateful that she left her piano to me. Once it looks like I'll be settled down somewhere, her piano will be coming with me; for now, it's one of the few things left at my mom's house. The second loss was my grandfather, Alvord, in June. I'm so lucky to have had my grandfather in my life for so long, and that he was so close by. A lot of people aren't so lucky. The grandkids all knew to ask Poppy if Gram and/or our parents said no to something; he inspired my desire to play the piano, after learning my first song, "When the Saints Go Marching In" on his organ. I grew my first garden this summer, full of zucchini, motivated by his ever-blooming summer garden. I'm proud that he was a WWII veteran, and that he was born, raised, lived, and passed away in PJ, and that he loved and was loved by so many. I miss him a lot.

Offsetting the losses, I had some pretty life-changing experiences as well. I left the US for the first time in February, and ended up spending 2 full months of 2008 out of the country. I spent 4.5 weeks in London over 3 trips, and 1 month in India. As a lot of my friends and family like to tell me, I'm quite the world traveler now. I really like London, and I enjoyed my time in India. Leaving the US definitely opened my eyes to the rest of the world, and how others live, and how much of the world is out there for me to see.

I celebrated love at 3 weddings this year. I helped raise a puppy. I went on my first week-long family vacation. I missed my far-flung friends. I made new friends. I thought about all of my experiences and what I'd like out of my young life, and I'm single for the first time in 5 years. I moved into my very own apartment. I voted for Obama. I lived my life, learning from my successes and failures as I went along.

So long, 2008. It was a good year.