New Year… New Me!

I’ve always had a desire to create a personal blog, so with 2017 approaching, I thought- hey why not! As the 2016  year comes to end, I wanted to take a step back and reflect on some of the things I have not only accomplished throughout the year, but set some new goals for the upcoming year!

I remember last year, when I sat down in Rome, and started thinking about my New Years resolutions for the upcoming 2016 year.  Although I did not get to accomplish all of the goals I set for myself, looking back I am proud of all the ones I did  and everything else that I had the opportunity to do. So far, I have not only completed a year and a half at Marist College, but I was able to spend two of my three semesters living and studying in Florence, Italy with some of the best professors in the world. During those nine months in Italy, I was able to embrace my new found passion for culture, language, travel and of course art. I was also fortunate to have made the Marist College Deans List, receiving over a 3.7 GPA for the past two semesters…all the while making friends and memories that will last me a lifetime.

My many accomplishments also taught me life long lessons. Some of the things 2016 taught me is to always be true to who you are and that sometimes you are going to need to take a step back and breathe. One thing that probably kept me sane throughout the year was the saying “If everything was easy, it wouldn’t be worth it”. I constantly reminded myself that those who work hard will achieve success, and if I was not challenged both academically and physically I probably would have been bored (HAHA).

One of the most common New Year’s resolution that people often desire usually pertains to health. Yes, it would be nice to loose fifteen pounds, but lets face it, that’s pretty hard to do. This New Years, instead of feeling self conscious or disappointed whenever I step on a scale, I thought of a great idea. Don’t feel bad about having that cupcake during Cupcake Tuesday (my favorite day at Marist), as long as you have a healthy lifestyle and eat the salad and veggies with your main course! I also plan on getting my butt out of bed at a reasonable hour (let’s stick to 9 am), and try to hit the gym at least 4 out of the 7 days in a week. In other words, I will try and be kind to myself but stay motivated.

The final thing I want to accomplish, which can often be the hardest, is to strive to be the absolute best person I can be. Don’t let someone else change who you are, because that is what makes you special and unique. Spend every minute wisely, and never think of anything as a waste of time. If it comes with failure, well… remember sometimes you need  to fail in order to reach success.This year has definitely been a roller coaster, but I am excited for 2017 and can’t wait to see where the journey takes me!