2023 has been about the year of making goals and meeting them. Not necessarily meeting them exceptionally but taking that first step on the journey or process.

I had aspirations and a bucket list of interests, that were propelled further with the encouragement of friends and even a health and wellness coach. (Psst, if you didn’t know, SportSG has a free 4 session programme with a health and wellness coach!)

I remembered meeting my coach, and discovered that I was a lot more intense, passionate, and determined than I had given myself credit for. And it was easy for me to set small goals to complete that vision of happiness I have in my head.

At the beginning of the year, one of my superficial goals was to…have a partner by the end of the year. In order to do that, I had to meet more people, and move past first dates. I signed up for Kopi Date, a blind date service of sorts where they match you based on your interests.

Another goal was to also pursue my interests. That laid in writing, travel, music, dance, and being a fangirl. I was exceptionally lucky to have win various giveaways and have sufficient finances to afford the experiences.

I managed to do a friend’s trip this year after a year of planning, and wrote a bit on my travels on this blog. I also started a new blog to recap on the music shows I attended. Personally, this was a huge accomplishment for me and the fact that it has made it to two pages in one year is craay. Using Capcut to publish unboxing videos has also been a way to help release that overwhelming feeling of being a fan too.

It was also an honour to attend dance classes of some of my favorite international dancers in 2023.

Another 2023 goal was also to fully enjoy the work-life balance. I managed to draft some SOPs from scratch on my own initiative. It might be a small thing to others, but it is still a small win to be celebrated. It has been a very fortunate year to have great colleagues who support you. My boss pushed me to work on my mid-career woes, and all I wanted this year was to take a 2-week trip, and I did it!

I even put on a friendship band on a minister this year?

On the spirituality front, it left much to be desired. But I should still celebrate the mini accomplishments – from fasting, to watching 10 minutes of religious content on Youtube every few days, to buying modest clothing, to signing up for classes. Grateful to have some sort of hidayah still, in this crazy world that we live in.

But of course, the year did not come with its own set of challenges:

A new challenge was overcoming your age. Growing older meant that you get weak more easily. I sprained my knee, and got COVID-19 a second time (even after having my third vaccination). Post-COVID, a back pain that has been going on for more than two weeks.

I should also say it was a year of spending too much. I bought so much merch, and photocards of people that I do not even like exceptionally. I have fallen into consumerism deep.

2023 was also the year of a wake-up call.

I am ashamed to have been so engrossed in worldly affairs and that it needed 🍉for us to wake up. The future is so bleak as we watch people being complicit in this act of terrorism. I mean, I’ve always had some form of inner conflict, but with 🍉, it just exacerbates it even more.

I’ve now seen the world in a different light, and it has altered the way my 2024 goals are going to be structured. One of my 2024 goals would be to continue doing what I can to support humanity and to stand on the right side of history. I truly hope to be able to be closer to Allah swt like the brave people of Gaza and Palestine.

To see people suffering for no reason is crazy, and the heart is constantly worn down watching the atrocities. We live in crazy times, and I hope this ends before 2023 ends, InsyaAllah.