As the year draws to an end, the drama and nostalgia set in. This year more than most, because, as you have probably heard dozens of times by now, today is not only the last day of the year, but also the last day of the decade. The last day of the 2010s. The decade of my childhood.
Sarah and I in Venice, 2012
True to the spirit of drama and nostalgia that comes on such days, a spirit that is both incredibly annoying and irresistibly fascinating, I have been thinking about these past ten years. I’ve grown from a happy little kindergartener who, in short, hated anything to do with reading, loved swimming (even though she looked like she was systematically drowning), and didn’t have a care in the world to a cheerful, reflective teenager who, in short, can’t stop reading, loves swimming (and is quite decent at it), and is worried about a lot of things she shouldn’t be.
I’m blessed and eternally thankful that I do not, like so many of my unfortunate characters, have a tragic backstory. My childhood was a wonderful one, primarily because I’ve always known my family loves me and that there’s a God who loves me even more.
Now it’s over.
(My childhood, that is.)
Technically I’m still a minor, and I will always be a child to God, my parents, and people who think that building sandcastles and forts is not something ladies above a certain age (which I have already surpassed) do. But if you really think about it, my concerns have morphed from moaning about lack of snow to – never mind, I still moan about that. My concerns have evolved from surviving thunderstorms to preparing, for college, for adult life, for surviving out there in the big wide world all by myself. I’m no longer a child.
That fact is both scary and exciting, but I will cherish this time of preparation, just as I cherish my childhood.
Focusing on ten years instead of one means that 2019 is not getting a lot of attention, but I’ll spare you from more drama and nostalgia. If you really want to know about my year, you can look in the archives.
I’ve grown a lot this past decade. In some ways for the better, in some ways for the worse, but that’s a part of life.
*raises toast* Here’s to the new decade and that your heart will be brimming with even more of the love and joy that spills from God!
*clinks glass of apple cider*
The Voyaging Storyteller 