reflection on 22

Today, it hit me how much has happened in my 22nd year of life. So I wanted to share some of them with you.

I graduated university! There has been so much that has happened that I almost forgot this one happened. In my last quarter, I was a part time student and a part time intern - something I never really imagined myself doing since I was always so overwhelmed with schoolwork. I finished strong, which I'm proud of.

I was given the amazing opportunity to serve in two countries abroad as an engineering intern to serve people and spread the gospel. And I was able to be fully funded by others. This is such a huge privilege and I'm so so grateful for it. I've learned so many lessons along the way that I don't have the time to share now (but stay tuned!) I still have 2 months left in Cambodia and I'm excited for what is to come.

I embarked on two of the most difficult hikes in my life - one to Havasupai (which you can read about here) and one to the top of mount Elgon. Havasupai was a three day hike with a 10 mile trek to a beautiful waterfall where we carried all of our camping gear. Elgon was another three day hike up a mountain with almost 10,000ft of elevation climb. Both of them required much training and mental motivation - I was surprised at what I can achieve physically, since I've never challenged myself like this before.

I went through the worst break up of my life with greater understanding of myself and a strength that I didn't have before. And I started on a journey of healing of anxiety and self-care through counseling and more intentional thought of self. I have taken strides in my emotional strength and maturity that can't really be quantified but I am so proud of myself in. Still have a lot to grow in, but celebrating the progress. Here's a picture of myself living my best life :-)

And lastly, I have grown in my friendships - making new ones, being reintroduced to old ones, and growing in my current ones. Growing in the current ones has often come with painful reconciliation, which has matured me - again, lots to grow in, but celebrating the progress. So grateful for the ones that are sticking it through and making life more joyful. Particularly I've been cherishing my female friendships, as that is something that has been redeemed in the past four years. Here are (some of) my favs <3

Oh, also, I think I found some pretty amazing new songs this past year. Or maybe my music taste has changed for the better. In either case, here's a compilation of some songs. Enjoy :-) 

Until next time!

siem reap

hello!

This past weekend, I took a short trip to Siem Reap. I was there for around 24 hours, but I think we were able to experience a lot in that time.

We arrived early Friday evening after a very short 30 minute flight. After we settled in a bit to our hotel, we quickly went out to explore. The place we were at had a lot of tourists, but I liked how much energy there was as we were walking. The sides of the streets had stores of various sizes and goods, with storekeepers trying to attract customers with their best English.

introduction: cynthia

This is one of my treasured friends, Cynthia!

 

Cynthia and I met in the spring of my freshman year of college. At this time, I was still afraid of making new friends and so it was kind of intimidating trying to talk to her. But we share a kind of curiosity where we are intrigued by almost everything. We are able to have meaningful conversations that are captivating and thought-provoking, which I love. We also share a similar interest in music and I absolutely love sharing songs with her. I recall one of our first one-on-one conversations where we talked about how we both knew this Japanese band that she loved growing up, and I think that may have sparked that? Honestly not too sure.

Something redemptive in our friendship is our perseverance through some hard/awkward times where it would have definitely been easier to simply let the friendship fade. But we worked those tensions out and I think that has made our friendship to be stronger. And we have been there for one another in some personally-difficult times, which is something I am beyond grateful for. We aren't always able to spend a lot of time together (usually separated by physical distance), but somehow, I don't feel like she's far away.

Cynthia is a lovely, passionate, and hopeful person. She is one who cares deeply about others in a way that is inspiring to me, and I'm honored to call her my sister and friend. Love you Cynthia!

until next time!

playlist _ 2018

Hello!! Here's my annual playlist I made of songs I discovered or rediscovered this year! You can browse through previous years of playlists here. You can find the playlist on spotify if you'd like to listen! This year, I'm going to list out the songs along with my favorite line. This playlist felt risky to share because the music style is a little bit different than it has been in past years. Anyways, hope you enjoy!