I can’t believe that we are already a month into 2025. If I am being completely honest, the last few months have been a whirlwind and I haven’t really had a moment to sit down and reflect. Now, I am taking the time to intentionally reflect on 2024 and also share what’s to come in 2025.
My words of the year for 2024 were beauty, balance, and boldness. I really do feel like 2024 was a year filled with all of those things. 2024 was my best year yet. It was the year that I fell in love with my life in the most magical way. I found God everywhere I went and delighted in how He surprised me with both beauty and wonder. One of my favorite sayings in 2024 was find beauty in the ordinary and I did just that. I had the chance to experience four new countries this year and dive deeper into the culture, food, language, art and most of all the people. Through these things, I was able to find beauty expressed and displayed in different ways. I also experienced immense beauty in my own life. This year I fell in love with the kindest and most loyal man I have ever met. We got engaged in September and it has been the most stunning love and the most healing love I have ever received. I found beauty in people especially those from different parts of the world. I made friendships from all over the world and connected with people on art or mental health or just simple beauty in nature. I discovered that we aren’t all that different and through our differences one can find knowledge, beauty, and seeds of life. 2024 was a year that I sought out beauty and it found me in the most unexpected ways and danced with me till the early mornings. It reminded me how special and sacred life is and to seek out God and His creation in all the moments.
For my whole adult life, I have struggled with balance. I lived in chaos and learned to “thrive” in it. Although I now know that this life was not a life of thriving at all, it was a life filled with endless work, busyness, and overstimulation. 2024 was the year I decided to prioritize rest, and moving my body. This year I walked a lot especially with living in Barcelona for 10 weeks. I discovered my love for walking and being present in time and space. There are so many studies now that one can find that speak of the benefits of walking and what it does for one’s physical and mental health. I also took time this year to really seek rest in little moments and in big moments. For a long time, I operated in a constant state of busyness and work. I slowly peeled back the layers on why I spent so much of my adult life living this way, which allowed me to reflect on it. I found that I utilize busyness as a way to escape hard feelings and as a way to use productivity to find my worth. Creating new patterns of rest required me taking a deep look at these things. To rewire my brain to know that I can handle hard feelings and not fall into a trap of deep depression like before. I have grown and healed, and I am not the same person I was ten or fifteen years ago. It also allowed me space to see how as a kid I employed performance as a way to feel loved. I had to reassess what this meant and remind myself that I love and serve a God who deeply loves and cares for me regardless of how I perform or how productive I am. Once I faced these hard things, I was able to start resting both in small amounts every day and in big amounts for one day a week. It was hard at first especially coming from a culture that demands work and stimulation 24/7. I found though that when I allowed rest to become a daily part of my life, I was both more productive and incredibly more peaceful. I found balance in 2024 and it takes continual effort for me to maintain these rhythms of rest and movement because there is so much deeper emotional baggage underneath that I am still sorting through. I can say now with confidence that it is getting easier, and balance is a practice I encourage everyone to discover.
2024 was a year overflowing with boldness. In 2024 I turned 30 years old and entered a new decade and wanted to live fearlessly, I took a leap of faith and decided to live in Barcelona for 10 weeks when I got the opportunity to do a solo show there. It was one of the best decisions of my life and it didn’t come without fear and doubt. I prayed over this decision and sought out discernment though. Through this careful decision process, I knew I was called to go. There were so many opportunities and moments that opened up my soul and filled me with both love and peace. I painted in a prestigious art club in Barcelona called Royal Artistic Circle of Barcelona and met some amazing lifelong friends there. Living solo in an unknown country internationally takes both guts and intelligence. There is a different way of life and one that is waiting to be discovered and tasted. There were so many amazing moments in my time in Spain that helped me grow into not only a better human being, but also a better artist. I painted 26 paintings during my first 7 weeks in Barcelona and had the opportunity to have my first European solo show. It was a delight and a wild ride that I will forever remember fondly. I also went to my first two art symposiums: one in Spain and one in Armenia. I met so many extremely talented and established artists that offered me laughter, friendship, and artistic growth.
I am beyond grateful for all that happened in my life in 2024. There was a richness to my life that I will always look back on with love and appreciation. It was a year of immense, growth, healing, and joy. I stepped out of comfort zone and was rewarded greatly, I found God in everything I did and I believe is the reason for the richness in the first place. I sought out beauty, balance and boldness in 2024 and they became great friends of mine that I will take with me from now on. As I step into 2025, I am walking with confidence that this will be another year of joy. There are many plans in the works already including another international show and my wedding. I am moving forward with a heart of gratitude. My word of the year for 2025 is PRESENT. I want to truly feel each moment and soak in this current season. Life goes by so fast and one must actively choose to be present in a world of constant distraction. I will be intentional about the little moments while also living in the big ones. I can’t wait to journey more into this year and see where it takes us. Thanks for coming along for the ride with me.
