It feels strange to write this post for many reason.
1) My first ever year-in-review post graced the internet in 2019. This is my fourth year-in-review and I never imagined I would stick with blogging for this long.
2) I actually didn’t stick with blogging this year (having dropped off the planet for 2+ months), so it feels weird to be reviewing something that I failed to chronicle on the blog.
3) I’m not really sure what to write about. The last couple years seem to be merging into one long, chaotic race through shark infested waters surrounded by land covered entirely in various cactus species. There’s no stopping or resting, only moving forward into more unknown, hopefully more beautiful lagoons.
Hindsight, it turns out, is a very valuable and very useless ability. We can’t change what happened, but we sure can draw conclusions about it.
2022 was not very kind to me. There were a couple months where all my posts had the same doom and gloom feel because that was all I could think to write about. (Here’s an example, if you’d like to peruse).
Back in March, my whole world tilted when my closest friend dropped me.
A large portion of this year was sent processing that hurt. I started playing the 3 Good Things Game with my younger sister – we would each share 3 good things that happened at the end of the day, nearly everyday. Even if it felt like nothing good was happening in my life, the joy of hearing good things in my sister’s life was enough hope to last me until the next round.
In May, I went to Ecuador on a mission trip. My article all about my week abroad unexpectedly reached audiences that weren’t regular readers of this blog. Although this mission trip was incredibly difficult (and came at a difficult time in my life), somehow my writing blessed others and I caught a glimpse of God working in the world. That’s a win for me.
At the end of May, this blog turned 3! The Paper Trail, spontaneously created by high school senior me, became a preschooler in 2022 and has incidentally recorded some of the world’s major historical moments over the past few years. But even more surprisingly, I also spontaneously started an email list in celebration, where I promised anyone who signed up a free unpublished short story written by me.
This email list still exists, and if you’d like that free short story, click the link below*!
And if you don’t know what an email list is, May me also wrote an impromptu explanation of all the ways you could follow my writing journey. Just click the “Subscribe” tab on the menu bar to learn more!
Over summer, I started tentatively brainstorming my sixth novel. And in August, I started half-heartedly writing it. Doubts about my abilities as a writer stopped me from getting very far into this draft, but I’m going to keep chipping away at the story until it matches the beautiful drama playing in my head. You can learn more about this novel, and my previous stories, by clicking the “Writing Projects” tab on the menu bar.
I also developed a (some might say unhealthy) obsession with books over the summer. I started a bookstagram where I post about books, book collecting, books I’m reading, and books I desire with all my heart. And occasionally I post my cats and Betta fish.
And finally, it wouldn’t be a year-in-review post if I didn’t once again link to my proudest accomplishment on this blog: my 2020 year-in-review post titled “If 2020 Were a Netflix Original TV Show.” This post makes me cackle every time I reread it and I hope as we finish out 2022 together, you might also find some enjoyment in reading a summary of the worst year in the 21st century.
I hope the new year brings new joy, peace, and courage. It feels unreal that it’s already 2023, and yet, I’m banking on 2023 to be the turning point we all need.
Happy New Year’s everyone!
*Here’s the link to the email list if the button doesn’t work: https://motivated-mover-190.ck.page/cff4bddee0
**And here are links to every link I mentioned in this article, for easy access:
A Semester in Review + My Unannounced Break from Blogging
Loneliness: 5 Lies We Tell Ourselves and Why They Are Wrong
What To Do When a Friendship Ends
The “3 Good Things Game” For a Bad Day
I Went to Ecuador for a Week: Here’s What I Learned
Happy Blog Birthday! The Paper Trail is 3!!
The Paper Trail 
I like the 3 good things game! As a pessimist it might help curb my sarcastic self.
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