As the curtain of 2016 silently falls – no one calling for an encore – we look filled with enthusiasm towards 2017. A and I have a million ideas for the coming year and are very excited to share them with you, once they come into being. But for now, I want to thank you for taking part in my life and will say goodbye to the old year with my five personal best of 2016.
5. Nora and the Easter bunny
This past Easter I traveled to Austria to celebrate with my family. Being able to spend Easter with my five year old niece was everything a distraught mind needs. Nothing challenges you quite as much and at the same time puts everything into perspective as much as the inquisitive mind of a five year old does. The children of the day give a new hope we all desperately need.
In this past year A and I spend much time apart but managed our personal and professional responsibilities to the best of our abilities. We exhausted all our energies and reserves, in any way possible but in doing so we also grew stronger as individuals as well as a couple. We are far from being perfect and definitely have some room for personal growth but who doesn’t? In the past year we managed to build a figurative house for our exhausted souls and bodies and I can honestly say I have never been happier in my life. Here’s to building a personal empire and striking back in 2017 with my better half.
A and I went on a super-mini vacation to Chios this past July. And although, due to my busy schedule, I could only spend three days with A in Greece, these three days where filled with food, fun and lots of heartache. This was my first time in Greece and I can see, why one would not ever want to leave Greece. I was very tempted to ditch my India trip for a few extra weeks in Greece but as you may know, I went on a 36 hours trip to India anyways. But fear not, this year there will be the return of the J&A to Greece.
2. Writing and rewriting
One of my favorite activities this year has been losing my mind over writing my dissertation. Finally being able to write on my thesis was everything I ever wanted. I didn’t know how much happiness one could feel from writing and rewriting the same sentence about a million times. I can honestly say I love every single second I get to spend vigorously typing my thesis, even if I go crazy during this process. In a few short days I will be traveling to the US collecting my data and will be one step closer to delivering my thesis in May. It’s quite astonishing how much energy and happiness I draw from this experience, it’s almost like a force is awaking within me teaching me how to light saber my way through the next few months.
1. The year of the elephant
For my birthday this year, A made me an elephant cake. He also gave me an elephant tea pot and an elephant lantern, both of which I treasure with all my heart. Back in May, I could have not in a million years known what would happen a few short months later in India. Life was about to get sweeter than I ever thought possible, it was a great experience, a rogue one if you will.
In retrospect, 2016 was one of my personal best years in every way possible. Thank you all for being part of every step along the way!
Finally, the Star Wars puns were no coincidence: This year I finally – much to A’s amusement – watched all Star Wars movies (yes ALL OF THEM) and this, among others, is A’s personal best of 2016. With this, I say thank you 2016 and for the next year, there’s nothing more to add then: may the force be with you.
A bird loves a fish 
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