Hello friends! Hard to believe it’s almost that time again to reflect on all of our choices from the past year and then make a list for all of the choices we intend to make next year (definitely NOT to forget about it within 3 weeks). Just kidding… kind of!
Jokes aside, 2025 has definitely been an interesting and exciting year. I have some reflections to share from each “era” of this year, and some thoughts before I dive into the next one. Here goes!
January – April 2025
I started the calendar year in Taipei, Taiwan, where I was finishing up my 8-month study abroad to learn Mandarin. One of the most memorable lessons I walked away from Taiwan with was that people’s perceptions of you do not change who you are. As a ethnically Chinese person in Taiwan, I spent the first bit of my academic year feeling insecure about my accent, language progress, or like I wasn’t “living up” to the expectations people had of me.
However, over the course of the year, especially in the latter few months, I began to learn that other people’s perceptions of me do not change my truth. (Also, I began to learn that the expectations which I thought other people were holding of me were not necessarily true.) From my time with my host family, I also learned how meaningful it is to slow down and let nature run its course. In the words of my host father: “Nature is never in a hurry, and yet everything is accomplished.”
May – August 2025
After returning from my year abroad, I spent the summer months back at home, reconnecting with family, processing my time away, and preparing to start college. In these months, I designed and started writing this blog, began learning how to code, and started cycling seriously, among other things.
This was probably one of the most “unproductive” extended periods of time in terms of earning money or doing things to benefit my career or studies, but I learned how essential rest is in order to discover hobbies and grow in new ways. My summer highlights included running a half marathon, completing my first century ride, reading The Courage to Be Disliked (this book STILL holds a top position in my rankings) and spending lots of time in the sun with family and friends. I did a lot of journaling, did some worrying about the future, then a lot more journaling to remind myself that everything will be just fine. And then, I started school!
September – December 2025
I moved to San Francisco to start my freshman year at Minerva University! The city surprised me on many fronts; I loved the nature and found home in the vibrant arts scenes amidst all the tech (they’re there if you look!). I learned about the contrasts of life in the same one city and how food insecurity and homelessness finds itself right around the corner from billion-dollar industries.
During my semester, I spent lots of time interacting with the city, the people (both my classmates and local San Franciscans), and learning about the dynamic problems and solutions arising in the area. Admittedly, I also faced challenges balancing my personal, academic, and social lives. This is a main focus of mine as I enter 2026. I plan to be more proactive with my self-care habits and more serious with my boundaries. I found that a lot of the time, I was dragged into the weeds of assignments, class prep, and day-to-day monotony that I often lost sight of the bigger picture. In the new year, I aim to better support my health, wellbeing, and make sure I’m making space for the things that really matter.
2026
My main goals for 2026 are building self-trust and resilience. I want to make decisions that I can look back on and proudly stand behind, knowing that I made the best choice given the information that I had at the time. And how will I do this, you might ask? Stay tuned for my new year’s blog post to find out!
With this, I say (a one-day-early) goodbye to 2025, and send the best wishes for the new year!
Love,
Leah
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