Jaaaaaaaanuary February Mar-SNOWSTORM-ch April MayJune...November CHRISTMAS!
I've thought and re-thought of how to write this blog post. In past years I've done "12 Resolutions for 12 Months" which in hindsight was basically a to-do list for the upcoming year - what can I say? I love a good to-do list haha! Although many people disregard the effectiveness of New Year's Resolutions, I embrace the chance to maybe tweak something in your life that you're unhappy with, be that a lifestyle change or a personal goal you want to accomplish.
I look back at 2018 with a warm, fuzzy feeling in my stomach of a year of mostly ups. There was downs, pretty horrible downs yes, but all in all I saw 2018 as a year of growth. And not just for me; I also extend that term to the country of Ireland; 2018 was the year the 8th Amendment - the one concerning abortion rights for a woman in Ireland - was successfully repealed. A stale conversation at this point but an incredibly important and revolutionary turning point for everyone in Ireland and not just because the amendment was successfully repealed but the landslide victory that brought home the confirmation that Ireland is changing, evolving.
Back to New Year's Resolutions, for me I set out to make 2018 a year of travelling, of pursing personal goals and of learning and changing certain parts of me that I wasn't 100% happy with (resolution no. 11 'Learn To Say No') and I can say that while I achieved some of those goals, there were ones I left on the backburner a bit too long (resolution no. 7 'Learn to play guitar') but the thing about resolutions is that they don't have an expiry date. Resolutions should guide your way through your year, not dictate it. For example, one of the first things I did for 2019 was book a guitar lesson. It was a resolution I intended to complete by 2017 but sure look, that's how life goes! I am incredibly proud of myself for completing the resolutions I had set out (resolution no.2 Edinburgh with the girls, 5.Run a (mini) marathon, 6. Finish college with a good result, 9. Go to a festival in 1.Ireland, 2.England 3.Abroad) amongst others because I have always been a believer of being your own biggest fan and I wholeheartedly stand by that. Ok I get it, sometimes you might not be fond of yourself; sometimes you wish you were someone else, anyone else but you but goddammit 90% of the time you have to be your own best friend. You have to be your own Kanye. You'll get enough s*it from people or society without adding yourself to the list of people/things that bring you down. So, like what I'm doing right now, I'm applauding me for my achievements and that's the attitude I'm bringing with me into 2019.
Something else that stands out to me about 2018 was it felt like a year of truths being exposed. In terms of Ireland as a society, the expose of huge Irish influencers was the big drama of 2018. We got sick of these influencers photoshopping and facetuning their Instagram photos to within an inch of their lives, of the rigged giveaways and buying of followers and likes. We got sick of ingenuity and lies. And to be honest I got sick of blogging partially because of what the platform became; a toxic environment where 'blogger' became a dirty word. I blog, and will always blog, because I honest-to -goodness enjoy it. And if 10 people or 1000 people read my blog makes no difference to me. Of course it's a good feeling to see your readership grow and feel like you have this voice in a vast world of social media. But I felt my love of blogging ebbing away when the blogging world fell to shambles. I didn't want to be part of a community that trick their fans into buying products they didn't genuinely love themselves, to hoodwink their followers when the world of social media is already a shitshow of curated versions of the 'perfect' lives.
So WHY come back?
The answer is, from someone who did an Final Year Project on the world of blogging, I can say with confidence, the world of blogging is becoming more and more transparent. People don't blindly follow anymore. And I miss this creative outlet for me. So I'll continue to blog as long as it stays fun!
So if you've stayed with me through my ramblings, thank you! I hope 2019 turns out to be everything you hope it to be. I hope you are strong enough to see through your lows and that your highs are a-plenty. I want to end this post with a look-back of my favourite moments of 2018 - as if my long-ass Insta story wasn't enough haha!
Until next time...
Aimee♥
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