Goodbye 2012, Hello 2013

2012 was a special year, for me.  It was indeed a year of opportunities and first times.  It was the first time I crossed over the Atlantic ocean, and I did it not once but twice already now.  It was the first time I lived by myself – I’m still considering the ups and downs of that.  It was the first time to be away from home during important holidays like Easter and Christmas, and that definitely was a difficult one. 

The year provided me with incredible opportunities to meet new people, make new friends, and learn new things.  I've learnt a lot, and I have truly experienced providence and generosity.  I've learnt that sometimes life is full of miracles.

In 2012, I started, for the first time, telling to the four winds, what I’m doing with my life.  Being quite reserved, it was not easy, but it’s the easiest way of keeping all my friends updated with what I’m doing.  I must admit that however I wasn't always good with that.

And do you remember Tina, my pet plant, which was keeping me company when I first arrived here?  It did survive for a relatively long time.  But the more real friends I got, the less attention I gave to her.  Tina died of natural causes, late in June, and was laid to rest on the 4th of July, in some friend's compost bin.

2012 was also a year of adventures.  It was my first time on a zip line, driving a golf cart and a quad bike.  And it was also my first time driving on the right in Malta – obviously that was a mistake.  This year I have seen snow for the first time, but I haven’t yet skied or ice-skated.  I hope that these will be some of the things which I’ll do for the first time in 2013.

With all these firsts and much more which I didn't list here, there are still a lot of things which I hope to try out this year.  From the 16^th of January onwards, the calendar days will not be my first in the US.  Being more settled and knowing what to expect, I will hopefully have the opportunity to turn my gaze to different opportunities.

In 2012, my motto was 'always say yes to new things'.  This indeed did work very well.  I still haven't thought what will be my outlook to 2013.  I’m just hoping that this year I’ll be more organized, and self-disciplined.  Wheter I’ll be able to do this only time will tell.  

In the mean time, I’d like to thank all of you who have been following me, and keeping me company through this first year.  I wish you all a Happy 2013, and I hope I will have more interesting stuff to write to you during this coming year!