Lessons from 2025
What stayed, what shifted, what grew
As the year wraps up, I wanted to pause and reflect on the lessons this year offered me, not all at once, but gradually. Some arrived through moments that felt heavy and overwhelming, others through stillness and quiet reflection. Looking back now, I can see how much shifted, not just in what happened, but in how I responded, what I learnt, and what I am carrying forward.
This year has had its highs and its lows, but above all, it has been a year of growth. I learnt a lot about myself, about the way I move through the world, and about the relationships I choose to nurture. What stands out most is how central friendship became in my life. In many ways, this was the year of friendship. Existing friendships deepened, becoming steadier and more secure, and new friendships found their way into my life at exactly the right time. These relationships showed me what it feels like to be valued and genuinely seen, not for what I offer, but for who I am. For someone who has experienced instability and disappointment in friendships before, these bonds healed parts of me I did not realise were still tender.
November was particularly challenging. It was a month marked by stress and anxiety over things I could not control. Before then, I believed I had a strong handle on my stress, but that period stirred something old within me. It tested my coping strategies and forced me to confront how quickly pressure can resurface familiar patterns. At the same time, it revealed a resilience I had almost forgotten I possessed. I kept showing up. I stayed disciplined, focused, and committed, even when things felt heavy. That month reminded me that resilience is not the absence of struggle, but the ability to keep moving through it. It strengthened my confidence in a way that feels especially important as I move into my final year of university.
Academically, this year mattered to me, and I am proud of how I showed up. I worked hard, stayed consistent, and pushed myself even when circumstances made things difficult. I proved to myself that I can perform under pressure and remain committed to my goals. At the same time, this year gently disrupted how tightly I had tied my self-worth to my academic outcomes. I began to notice how easily ambition can turn into identity, and how fragile that becomes when life reminds you that control is never guaranteed. University is important to me and something I take seriously, but I am learning to hold it as one meaningful part of my life rather than the entirety of who I am.
One of the most grounding mindsets I developed this year was simple, but powerful: what is meant for me will not miss me. If something is meant to be, it will find its way in its own time. Letting go of the urge to force outcomes softened my anxiety and allowed me to trust effort without clinging to results. Learning to sit with uncertainty, rather than rushing to resolve it, has been one of the quieter but most meaningful shifts this year.
As the year unfolded, one lesson became impossible to ignore. The way I show up for others is not always mirrored in return. At first, that realisation carried a quiet grief, especially when it involved people I cared deeply about. Over time, though, it became clarifying rather than bitter. It taught me that generosity does not need to be transactional to be meaningful, and that giving from a place of obligation eventually turns into resentment. Adjusting my expectations allowed me to protect my energy, set healthier boundaries, and remain sincere in the way I care, without overextending myself.
What this year also taught me is that change and growth are rarely loud or immediate. For long stretches, it felt as though nothing was shifting at all. There were periods where I genuinely believed I was stuck, repeating the same patterns and learning the same lessons. But growth is often quiet and slow, almost unnoticeable while it is happening. It is only through consistency, through continuing to show up and do the work even when it feels unrewarding, that change begins to take shape. Looking back now, I can see the difference. In how I respond. In what I tolerate. In how I speak to myself. The change did not arrive all at once, but it arrived nonetheless.
Looking back now, I can see that I have achieved things the version of me from a year ago would be genuinely shocked by. Goals I once believed were unattainable, especially ones I had repeatedly struggled with, slowly became possible. I grew in discipline, resilience, and self-belief. Some of that growth is visible in achievements, and some of it exists quietly, in how I carry myself and how I meet difficult moments. For the challenges that stretched me, the lessons that humbled me, and the progress that unfolded slowly over time, I am deeply grateful for this year and everything it gave me.
That’s all from this chatterbox today.
With love, always.
Ari <3