I was standing on Arthur’s Seat, halfway through the summit, when the year turned into 2016. I was too cranky to climb the steep road and it was so cold and so dark I couldn’t see anything. The year began with fireworks. People started to sing Auld Lang Syne once the fireworks end.
And that was how my journey in 2016 began.
2016 has been harsh. Like the snow frosts that fall from the sky during a snowstorm, hitting my bare face with their rough surface and freezing temperature. But some people, including me, need to learn it the hard way before we realize that we’ve been trapped in an illusion of happiness. So then we begin to escape and recreate new happiness – this time for real.
2016 has been kind. With all the opportunities, love, joy, laughter, good friends and family, fortunate strokes of serendipity, and God’s blessings. Problems and challenges occurred throughout the year but great things also came along the way. And it’s only a matter of perspective, how we ultimately see our life.
2016 has been a great teacher. It taught me about the value of people around me, self-worth, true form of happiness, inner peace, the value of time, hard work, confidence…
It taught me about acceptance. That life is full of secrets and it has an interesting way of working. It surprises us – both in a good and in a bad way. Sometimes our plan doesn’t work, sometimes the result isn’t as good as we expect it to be, sometimes we just don’t get the thing we want the most in our life. And without acceptance, we might not be able to handle the irritation, the disappointment, and the sadness caused by those unfavorable circumstances. So we gotta accept, with the faithfulness that everything has been meticulously planned by The One who holds the life of every single human being in the planet.
It taught me about forgiveness. It heals us. It brings peacefulness in our heart. It’s how you eventually let go of the past. More importantly, forgiveness isn’t about making peace with those who have hurt us. Forgiveness is all about making peace with ourselves.
2016, to me, is a book full of wonderful stories. And now I’ve come to the last page. Thank you, for the sweetest goodbye, the warmest hello, and the endless opportunities.
I hope we all have had an awesome year.
I hope we all are ready for 2017; to be brave enough to take chances, to be faithful enough to open our heart, to be strong enough to defend our values, to be kind enough to always spread happiness, to be confident enough to do something good for ourselves, to be adventurous enough to inspire people – then to be inspiring enough to change the world (or the people around us, at least), to be wise enough to pick the right people we want to keep in our life, and to be curious enough to always learn something new and improve ourselves to be a better person.
Bye, 2016.
♥ Atiqah Zulfa Nadia
atiqahzulfanadia.com 