The beginning of this year has felt a lot like an afternoon sky pregnant with the promise of a rainstorm.
Stay with me.
You know... those overcast afternoons when clouds are rolling in quicker than usual, when you can feel the threat of rain clouds suspended above you, anxious over how long the downpour will last once it has begun and whether you’re loved ones will make it home safe.
I experienced an unusually tumultuous few days into the beginning of the new year while I was still home visiting over the holidays, and upon returning to New York, I’ve learned that a few close friends are dealing with heavy times, too.
Through this collective experience of undoing, the month of January has forced me to be more vulnerable, to prioritize what I want life to look like through the good and the bad, and challenged me to just seize these things already. If there’s anything to be said about periods of unrest in one’s life, it’s that they allow no permission for apathy or the illusion of detachment from responsibility.
I’m being very vague, mostly to protect both my own privacy and that of my friends. I think I just needed to write this to acknowledge that this year is here, and to be a voice amongst the many “THIS IS YOUR YEAR!” platitudes to say it’s okay if it’s not panning out to be all that you expected.
Anyway, a new calendar year simply brings another day. Sometimes this means an opportunity. Other days, it’s just rain needing to pass.
