GROW WITH SARAH GRACE

Twenty-Twenty Two. 

Quite an eventful year.

I’ve been putting this off for quite some time. I don’t know if it’s because I don’t want to talk about it or because I have too much to say. Whatever it is, I’ve finally mustered up to do it. 

Growing up, I loved watching “Dancing With The Stars”. I still watch a season or two if I have a celebrity I really like but for the most part, I’ve grown out of it. However, one of my most “out-of-pocket” dreams is that I want to be on the show. I am the worst dancer known to man so it wouldn’t end well but I always loved the idea.

They have one episode in particular that has been a part of every season for as long as I can remember and that is an entire episode dedicated to a memorable year of the celebrity dancing. Some chose the year they hit stardom, got married or when their mother beat cancer. Whatever it was, they all had a year ready at hand.

I always tried to imagine what my “memorable” year would be and to be completely honest, I always said I didn’t have one, until this year. Don’t get me wrong, memorable things have happened to me in past years but nothing that made the entire year stand out. 

Usually, my years are filled with minor ups and downs scattered throughout but 2022 was different. I find it fitting to categorize my 2022 into two parts, the first part being from the months of January to April and the second half being from the months of May to December.

The first part was amazing. I took a huge step and started my personal blog and have watched it grow in 2022 with me. I did what I love most for four and half months straight. I traveled to beautiful places like Greece, Switzerland, the Italian Coast and Ireland (to name a few). I ate pasta almost everyday in Italy and walked around Poland and Austria and soaked up the culture.

I laughed at 4 am with my roommate, Julia Briggs and spoke (almost) fluent Italian at local cafes. I saw the Eiffel Tower sparkle and got to spend some time abroad with my family even though they are terrified of flying. I enjoyed a private sailboat ride in Barcelona and rode an ATV in Greece. I finally enjoyed genuine British black tea at tea time by Buckingham Palace and went to a pirate themed ice bar in Amsterdam. 

The first part of my year was full of a thousand memories that I could write a book on but all those fun and happy memories were brought to a halt on May 4 when I got a phone call. It’s quite interesting just how fast life can change. One moment, you’re enjoying a picnic with friends in Rome, Italy then within the hour, you get life-changing news.

My Pop passed away in the beginning of May and I was 4,000+ miles away. I have never felt so alone as I did the moment I got that news. The heartbreak I felt that day is one I never could have imagined and will never forget. Honestly, I still haven’t recovered from it and probably never will. 

I wasn’t there to say goodbye and never got the closure I so badly needed and that will haunt me for the rest of my life. My Pop wanted me to continue my travels so I did and once I returned to America, the grass at his grave was already starting to grow.

My mental health hit an all-time low in the second half of the year. I was on cloud 9, my best health mentally and physically in Europe but that high lasted only a short while and it will take more time to get even remotely close to that feeling again. 

Once back in America, I took a little spill in my garage and split my knee open, partially relapsed in my eating disorder, learned who my true friends were, got my wisdom teeth out and said goodbye to many childhood places that shaped me into who I am today. 

So, I guess what I’m trying to say is that 2022 was not necessarily a whole rollercoaster, more just the first big hill you get. A nice slow up and then a speedy trip down. I am taking it day by day but am going to try my best and wake up everyday and be grateful and try to better my mental and physical health again in 2023.  

2022 built me up but ultimately broke me. It taught me many lessons and has altered my view on life tremendously. My biggest take away from last year? Tell the people you love, that you love them. Hug your family and friends a little tighter next time. Don’t move across the pond for five months and expect nothing will change. But most of all, take it day by day and you’ll slowly get by. 

2023, please be nice.