Beginnings and Ending are Always the Hardest Parts

So I found myself laying in bed recently, looking at the calendar and realizing that 2011 was right around the corner. At this thought I wondered "where did the year go?" and "what did I do with my 2010?" At first I felt that i had wasted the year, but upon deeper retrospect I began to see that countless little things had made my year memorable. It hasn't been what I would call the best year of my life, but it certainly wasn't the worst. It was life- plain and simple. It was a year filled with learning, growing, changing, hurting, healing and just being and becoming who I am. At this point I will attempt to list flashbacks and snippets of memorable moments that made the year 2010 for me. (In simi-(but not really) chronological order.

I brought in the New Year of 2010 with some good friends.
I left my teen years behind me.
I fell in love.
I went to KY for the first time.
I was broken down on the side of the road for the first time.
Someone helped me let my walls down.
This was the first year I had a Valentine.
I got snowed in.
I started drinking coffee.
Driving in the snow was a new experience for me.
I made the mistake of taking online classes.
Stress got the better of me.
I over-looked poor decisions.
I hit someone's car with someone else's car. Uninsured.
I got a job to pay for the damages.
Was fired from the job I got to pay for the damages.
Compromises were made.
Good grades were made.
I got my first car!
I discovered the difficulty of a long-distance relationship.
I made plans.
I got in touch with my inner child.
I did yoga.
I made new friends.
I took summer classes.
I babysat.
Hunting for jobs is just as hard as it sounds.
I had second thoughts.
I felt conflicting emotions.
I took a road trip.
Chaperoned a youth trip to Kings Dominion.
Difficult decisions had to be made.
The long distance relationship was cut short.
We decided to remain friends.
I cried for a week.
Someone lived on my floor for a month.
I went to two funerals and a wedding.
I stood by a friend's deathbed.
I went camping, bridge jumping, and swimming.
I got a really great tan.
Summer classes ended just as Fall classes began.
I found a Summer job just before school started.
I realized that working ridiculous hours, not eating or sleeping enough, being on leadership and taking a full course load while still attempting to maintain a social life will cause you to break down in tears in the middle of a crowded hallway.
Temporary job ended. Angels sang.
Friendships are hard.
Hiking, tailgates and football games, and random road trips are fun.
I was a total jerk.
Friendships and trust were broken.
I saw the Almost in concert and met Aaron Gillespie.
I got another tattoo.
I went to snowflex for the first time.
Shared Thanksgiving with family and friends.
I had (and still have) a lot to be thankful for.
I went to another wedding.
Money was tight.
Friends got together, friends broke up, friends got engaged.
Pranks were pulled.
A few all-nighters and a ton of studying led to my passing all my classes and achieving my goal of a 3.0 GPA
I was wrong.
Friendship is more important than pride and communication solves a lot of problems.
Christmas with my family was wonderful.
Life is funny sometimes.
Party planning is under way.
I plan to once again greet the new year with some good friends.

This is a very much condensed version of life over the past year. It was filled with ups and downs. It was beautiful and messy, easy and difficult, fun and challenging. I probably left a lot of things out. This year has really shaped me. It will be bitter sweet to see it end, but every ending is just an opportunity for a new beginning. Here's hoping that 2011 is everything and more than 2010.

"For I know the plans I have for you,” 

declares the LORD, 

“plans to prosper you and not to harm you, 

plans to give you hope and a future."
Jeremiah 29:11

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart

and lean not on your own understanding;

in all your ways submit to him,

and he will direct your path." Proverbs 3:5-6