2014 Wrap-Up - Laments & Raptures!!

Yes, today I finally realized it – 2014 is almost done. Not only that, it has also taken me the whole year to realize that I have done pretty much nothing like what I planned to, at the outset of 2014.

• I did not read that 100 books I wanted to;
• I stumbled through my resolution of ‘No-Meat-Anymore’, only to discover that I was not cut out for the ‘Veggie’ frame yet (Apparently, I am too young still to grasp ancient philosophy :P);
• I did not write as much as I would have liked to;
• I failed trying to convince my mom for a tattoo;
• I lost contact with a huge number of buddies without whom I, once thought, could never spend a day without;
• My blog that I had planned to take to a new different level still hosts the same boring life-topics;
• I wanted a job in Hyderabad but ended up working in Chennai;
• The decision to avoid disappointment by not expecting people to treat you the way you treat them went down the drain;
• I failed miserably at maintaining relational harmony with people that mattered the most;
• The resolve to not lose my temper and jump up & down like a fussy squirrel turned out to be too grueling and soon, I had resorted back to letting my fiery temper run wild;
• I never took that solo trip I always wanted to. 

Fine, I am not going to lament anymore but this list is not exhaustive.

Also, edging closer to the quarter-life crisis year by year, I began freaking out that I would never contemplate the sheer meaning of my existence on this planet. I was losing fast, on all that hope I had harbored from my childhood, that my mom brought me into this world to achieve something special. Would I ever in life, amount to greatness or was I going to spend the rest of my years in denial of who I am and live on to be an unremarkably average person? Thinking about them made my head swirl.

A couple of days ago, when I was repeatedly lamenting thus to a friend, he suddenly pointed out, "You are so full of yourself that you refuse to even observe the rest of the world. Take a moment away from yourself and look around; you will see that a lot of people do not even have a clue about what they want to be in life. But you! You know where your passion lies. Do you not always say you would become a writer someday? Does that not mean you at least have something to work toward and look forward to? Stop complaining about all the crap that sucks in your life and begin appreciating every single thing that has made your life worth living for till now."

Well, yeah, I pissed him off with all my self-indulgent lament, but he got his way with me. His pep talk got me thinking. I started searching for a different angle from which I could perceive 2014. Instead of whining about what I did not do, I considered what I had done.

• Maybe I did not read a hundred books, but I covered around 30 books.
• Yes, I found out I was not a veggie-friendly person, but I did hold good on my resolution for almost a year and also ended up finding out it was useless to pretend that I cared about all the meat-giving animals. No, that is not who I am right now and I am to glad to embrace that trait of mine because that's ME.
• I did not write much but I did write a few articles and also win a few competitions.
• I couldn't get a tattoo but I got my own pair of green-colored lenses :D..
• Losing contact with a huge number of friends threw light on the ones who were going to stay in my life forever and I in theirs'.
• Yep, face it, my blog is full of me and writing these boring posts has actually helped me spill my mind into words and in turn, relax.
• Though Chennai was not an initial option, it gave me an opportunity to get to know amazing people.
• Of course, it was disappointing when people did not treat me back the way I did them, but I never stopped.
• Relational harmony and anger management is not exactly my strong forte but it was overwhelming to know that few people still loved me irrespective of it.
• That solo trip is still pending but I trekked Nagalapuram and made some wonderful memories.

By the time I finished, I was feeling great. Believe me, it has actually worked wonders on me. A slight attitudinal shift from pessimistic to optimistic is all it takes to live life like a pro. Yes, it has not been easy - to start thinking on the terms of what we have done rather than what we have not, but the thing is - there is a widespread saying that the mantra to a happy life is 'No Regrets', which simply means not being too hard on yourself. Judging yourself harshly for what you did wrong or what you did not do right is downright toxic to your system. So, take it down a notch with the judging (That is what I am going to do hereafter)

I would like to get this over with, by mentioning a quote from my all-time favorite collections.

So, if you have always known what you want to do in your life, the first person standing between you and your dream is yourself. Knowing what you want to become in life is just the starting step to a long journey ahead. While your beloved ones will help you along the way, it is YOU who has to ultimately finish what you started. Time's a bitch and it will neither understand you nor your passion. Therefore, before it slips away from your clutch, make it count. Was all you did in 2014 a big fat nothing? Who cares now, there is just a month left of it. So, let's welcome 2015 with a bang and start afresh.

Here's to cracking open all our bottled wishes in 2015 - Cheers!!