By Jasmine Brockington
Welcome 2024! As this new year is here, it is a chance to truly better myself as a person, a student, and a woman of God.
I believe that this year is going to be a reset for everything in my life and will give me an idea of what I want my life to truly be like.
What was:
In 2023, there was room for error in my entire life, from bad eating habits, mental health struggles, and putting energy into relationships that were toxic. I didn’t know any better, I just believed that if I just smiled and stayed positive, blessings would come. I was truly wrong.
Sure, 2023 was a good year, I have great friends, a healthy relationship with my family, and completed my first year at college and was in the middle of my sophomore year.
But was I happy? That is a question I am not sure I have an answer for to be honest. Was I happy or was I just comfortable in my environment? Was I happy with myself or was I happy making other people happy? Was I happy or was I just going through the motions?
Once I realized I was just doing things to make others happy, it was too late to change anything. I was stuck in friendships that benefited the other person more than me, I was in organizations that didn’t even benefit my major and what I wanted to do in my career, and I wasn’t close with God as I used to be.
I didn’t want to look at myself in the mirror because I was not the person that I genuinely wanted to be and that I was disappointing everyone around me. But the truth is: I was disappointing myself.
It was time for me to change for the better. Once December 31st 2023 came around, I knew it was going to be the last time I felt like this.
What is to come:
A new year. A new me.
I know people say this every year and try to change their whole lives in the span of 365 days and then get defeated when absolutely nothing is accomplished and they feel like a failure in the end.
So instead of saying that phrase, I am going to change it to make it more realistic.
A new year. A better me.
I am still the same person as I was last year, but I am going to change for the better.
Putting myself first, putting my happiness first, leaving negativity behind in 2023 and last semester.
Saying goodbye to the toxic restraints of social media and welcoming the new world of books and worlds I couldn’t even imagine for myself.
Becoming closer to God through my relationships and doing things through His plan instead of trying to change on my own.
Reflecting on the last year and welcoming 2024 entails more than just staring off into space and going through flashbacks.
I see what I have done in the past and I will learn from my mistakes to make this year the best it can be through growth and self confidence.