I was drinking cran-cherry juice yesterday and my sister said it looked like I was drinking wine.
…that is one awful sunglasses tan -______-
New icon!
Twenty-three.
I think over the last week I was complaining about being 23. I kept telling people I was old…that I couldn’t believe how old I was getting…but I came to a sudden realization in the few hours before midnight: I’m really freaking lucky. I need to stop complaining about being 23 and be grateful that I’ve reached this age.
Over the past month, I’ve realized how much I have to be thankful for. I think of something new everyday, and it always blows my mind - how is it that I have more to be thankful for today than I did yesterday? That’s the amazing thing about it - it isn’t possible to run out of things to be grateful for.
I often think I must have done something good in my past life to have been blessed with the life I have now. I have the most incredible family - not just my parents and sister, but extended family as well…aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents. Then my friends - childhood friends who are more like sisters, high school friends, college friends, Tumblr friends, work friends, language-learning friends. Not even just friends, but also classmates, schoolmates, random people who may have touched my life without knowing it.
I have some of the kindest, most incredible, most loving people in my life. I honestly can’t believe my luck that I’ve met them…or that I’m related to them…or that they actually like me and are my friends. Really, I don’t know what I’ve done to deserve them, but I’m so incredibly grateful.
I’m grateful for this life I’ve been given.
I’m grateful that I’m healthy, that everyone I love is healthy, that I’ve never wanted (or needed) for anything.
I’m grateful that certain things have come easily to me.
I’m grateful that other things haven’t come as easily and have taught me to value perseverance, hard work, and have shown me how gratifying it is to accomplish something after putting in so much effort.
I’m grateful that I was born Indian, but grew up in the U.S.
I’m grateful for every single song/singer, movie/actor, book/writer I’ve enjoyed (or been obsessed with hehe) throughout the years because they’ve all undoubtedly taught me something and helped shape me into the person I am today.
I’m grateful for all the teachers I’ve had - actual teachers and professors, but also other people I know or have known who’ve taught me something.
There’s so much more I could write here, but then this post would never be complete. I could keep adding onto it for the rest of my life and still never be done, so I’ll finish it here.
I just want to say it one more time, for the sake of emphasis - I can’t believe how lucky I am, and I really am blessed in every way.
When I was in seventh grade, my teacher and a teacher from Japan started a classroom friendship program. Everyone in my class was matched up with a Japanese pen pal. Mine was named Mari. We would write a letters, give it to our teacher, and she would send them all to Japan together. Then they would (assumably) do the same from that side.
We exchanged addresses and kept writing to each other after that year, but for some reason, the correspondance stopped. I keep thinking about it, but I can’t remember why that happened. :/
I wish it hadn’t - I miss her! I wonder what she’s doing now. There are so many things I wish I hadn’t taken advantage of as a kid. I didn’t appreciate them because I never understood how precious they were.
I’m just glad that I realize it now with enough time to try again - this time being able to fully appreciate what I have.
I don’t know why I’m posting this.
But this forum was a lot of fun.
Life is fun.
I’m content :)
I often hear friends, complete strangers, characters in movies complain about their families. Vacation times are ordeals to be survived. Family reunions are painful.
I’ve never felt this way, and this trip - more than any other - has made me realize how completely blessed I am. I love everyone in my family. They’re such beautiful people, inside and out: friendly, kind, caring, and extremely intelligent. And yet they don’t boast about themselves - instead they boast about everybody else.
I don’t know how many times I heard, “Both Aditi and Tejashri are so brilliant” (Aditi and I always made faces at that) and “Aditi does this, this, and this” “Tejashri does that, that, and that.”
And my cousin, the one who got married, said that my dad was his inspiration: “Whenever anybody asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would always say, ‘An engineer like Raju Mama.’” I was touched - I can only imagine how touched my dad must have been.
I’m incredibly lucky just to know these people…and I’m related to them? I wonder what I ever did to deserve that ♥
(Judging by this, my sister feels the same way!)
Everyday while going to work.
The flickering was my doing because I wondered what that button was for :P but the constant focusing is so annoying.
Edit: Although, usually the train comes too fast for me to whip my phone out and film it. It came strangely slowly today.
Everything has gone wrong since I first woke up. I’m the type of person who will be angry/upset/depressed for a bit (other than when I’m actually, legitimately depressed) and then get over it pretty soon with some sort of positive outlook. But today, every time I’ve found a positive side, something else has come along and slapped me in the face.
So…I have my laptop on the carpet in front of me in the family room. I’m switching between doing a plank for twenty seconds and resting on my stomach repeatedly while watching “The Reichenbach Fall” (which reminds me a lot of the finale of Vampire Prosecutor).
Thank goodness the day is ending even as I right this.
And it’s now tomorrow.
I’d been feeling like this lately, but today the gates finally lifted. It wasn’t a stroke of fate or anything mystical. It was a change of perspective - a much-needed one. And I feel like myself again.
I don’t know where to begin even thinking about 2011. This has honestly been the shortest year of my life - so short I almost feel as though I skipped it completely, and yet so much happened.
I went through some of my old posts and journal entries (click images for original posts):
I can’t imagine a better way to start off the new year. The movie was fantastic (even if it shouldn’t have been dubbed), seeing MatsuKen and Nino was freaking amazing, and (my favorite part) I got to meet Misato, who I now consider one of my closest friends. I can’t believe I’m only met her in person once…
Our never-dying tradition of getting a Reese’s sundae from Baskin Robbins and sharing it and taking a picture with the spoons sticking out like bunny ears.
It might be silly for me to include this, but this was an important part of this year to me :)
My birthday is always fun, but for some reason I cherish this one so much. And especially this moment. I find it difficult to express how much I love these girls.
And Spring Break was just amazing in general.
India won the World Cup ♥
I can’t wait to meet her again.
I graduated O_O
I said goodbye to San Diego :’(
This album came out too :D
Another friend I can’t wait to see again.
I’d rather not write down what I wrote in my journal, but I do want to say this…it surprises me to realize how passionately I wanted to do something at the beginning of the year - and that I still want to do it just as passionately now. Seeing that my desires haven’t changed, I’m more convinced than ever that it’s the right thing for me to do.
I honestly don’t know if I’ve developed as a person. In some ways, toward the end of the year, I felt like I regressed a bit, but I’m working on it - trying to become someone I’d like to be friends with. :)
And, there’s one thing I’m absolutely certain of in 2012. I can’t wait until it comes around.
2012, I’m going to make you good.
Happy New Year, everyone!
