Year in Review | Highlights of My 2017 and 6 Things It Taught Me

by - December 26, 2017

I was thinking of skipping this usual yearend post of mine because the thought of having to look back to the past twelve months is excruciating for me.  I honestly don't want to reminisce what has happened, the good moments and the bad, because both would just lead me to misery.  But I still wanna confront my emotions and face reality even if I know deep inside that doing this would just be a total torture.  Besides, I could use a good cry as I wrap up 2017.

The year went by so fast.  For a moment, I was wishing things could slow down a bit so I would be able catch up.  And after reaching a crossroad, my life shifted and all it took was one decision that shook my world.


I still feel grateful nonetheless.  Even if it seems like my 2017 hasn't been the best year and it's nothing like the past one where a lot of things took me by surprise, I still like to believe that life's lowest points are always the best trigger of self-growth.

So here's a recap of my year.

Amazing collabs...

In the first half of the year, my hard work kinda paid off and I was able to gain the trust of these amazing online beauty sources.

I teamed up with BeautyMNL as my first collaboration this year.  In case you haven't seen the haul video, click here.


I also had a fairy godmother!  Althea spoiled me with a total of 3 boxes. 

I received a Beauty Box, a limited edition Birthday Box and they let me try their first ever product - the Petal Velvet Powder.




One unexpected email came in May and it's from a brand I've never thought of teaming up with.  

Sephora surprised me with a highlighter shopping spree.  Check out my haul/first impression video here.  

Oh yes, I still owe you a throwdown post. 😊


Goodies from Celeteque also came to my doorstep.  I was able to try their sun care line and of course, I brought all of them when I went to Boracay.


To all of the brands who showed trust, here's a BIG, FAT THANK YOU! 😘

I also appreciate the click of the share button, so thanks to the following for showing some love!




That one litty night...

Have you had an experience when you felt like you've just been the happiest person ever?  I had mine back in January when I saw Jay Park in the effing flesh.  And what made it like my "pwede na ko mamatay" moment was when I got the chance to hold his hand.  Yeaaaaa!  😍


First official "get out of Manila" trip...

My year won't be complete without an escapade with my squad.

Last summer, we traveled to the north.  Too bad, our plan to try strawberry-picking didn't happen.  Blame the bad hangover.  Haha!

Check out the blogpost here.


Back to the island...

We also had a taste of summer in July.  Another crazy yet memorable trip with le familia.


And of course, my solo Bohol trip was one for the books.  


We find ways...

I finally said goodbye to my dearest company after sometimes hellish, most of the time awesome, fulfilling 7 years.  I admit that the first few months gave me a really hard time but there's no reason for me to regret it now, because saying yes to that job offer back in June paved way for new friendship.  Thanks to them, the place feels so much better.  


Strong not skinny...

A milestone happened in my pole journey.  


I joined the recital and let me tell you, it was harder than I thought.  But hell yea, it's worth it.  I got so disappointed though, because I wasn't able to execute the routine properly.  Nevertheless, it felt more like an achievement rather than a plain experience.  

Inked...

Another tick off my bucket list - my first tattoo!


I wanted my first to be meaningful so I opted for Daddy Tor's handwriting.  He didn't know that it's for my tattoo.  I just asked him to write down the not-so unique quote that I thought of.  Haha!  😆

For me, it's how I wanted him to be forever part of me.  He's after all, my hero, my one true believer of my dreams. 

If you're considering getting your first as well or getting another, I recommend Katz - @katzlorenzana.

I had my fair share or ups and downs this year and each has taught me a lesson.


Sacrifices tantamount to the love you give to the person you're making sacrifices for.  The bigger the sacrifice, the greater the love you're letting yourself give away.  And the more you do it, the more love that you are supposed to be giving yourself disappears.  It slowly consumes you.  It sucks you dry.  I learned that each of us should set a limit and not forget that what's more important is self-love above everything else.

Not all love story has a happy ending.  There's no such thing as a perfect relationship and for sure, everyone would agree to this.  Just like the Maroon 5's song says, "it's not always rainbows and butterflies".  No matter how deep and true the love is, it won't ever be just like how you imagined it to be.  It won't ever be a fairy tale.  I learned that sometimes you just have to pray for strength NOT for you to be able to beg that he'll fight for you til the end, but rather for you to be able to accept the fact that it's a never-ending, one-sided battle.

Sometimes you're the problem.  It's not the situation.  It's not even the people.  You could be the one creating a drama that's not supposed to be there in the first place.  I learned that your attitude towards the problem could sometimes be the REAL problem and looking at the bigger picture or maintaining a positive perspective would help big time. 

Future isn't so scary after all.  I'm already in a daunting phase of my life where I feel like I need to be more responsible.  It's like bigger challenges are on their way and whenever I think of what could happen x years from now, I always freak out.  That's until I wrote down my goals, big and small.  Everytime I cross something out in the list, I always feel a bit relieved.  I learned that you can plan and take control of your life.  Things can turn out differently but that should not make you give up on your dreams.  

Stay as long as you could and leave as soon as you should.  It's tricky coz how the hell can we know WHEN, right?  This year, I had to make two of the toughest decisions in my life.  I admit that I have regrets and more could cross my mind later on.  I learned that decisions, wrong or right could still lead you to where you want to be.  And if you still got lost along the way, what's important is the character that you'll grow into and how you bounce back from every fall.  

You are worth it.  You, of all people should know what you truly deserve.  No one is entitled to make you feel anything less of a person.  I learned that we shouldn't be too hard on ourselves and settle for less just because of how people treat and think of us.  


That's it.  

To be honest, I wanted to hate 2017.  It has been a bumpy ride and definitely a year that I would hate looking back to in the future.  However, I know that hating it would do no good.  It's better for me to be thankful for all of the blessings that came (asked and not asked), for the people who stayed, for the people who left and for the new awesome ones that came.  It may not be the best year but it still turned me into the person I am today - still a work-in-progress but stronger.  And I think that's good enough.

I'm not expecting anything in 2018 and frankly, I don't feel like I have reasons to be excited.  I'll just focus on my goals and enjoy life.  It should be that simple anyway, shouldn't it?

I wish you all the best!  Cheers, good luck and dream on!


your sweetest drug,

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