Reflecting on 2013

First off, here’s wishing all of you a very happy new year 2014! I hope you had a great time ushering in the new year, and will continue to have a wonderful time throughout the year. 🙂

I did this tag on my blog last year, around this time, and found it a lovely way to introspect about the year gone by and my learnings from it. I decided to do it this year, too.

Here we go.

What did you do in 2013 that you’d never done before?

~ I began to read historical fiction.

~ I went on a sponsored trip to the jungles of Kanha.

~ I explored parts of Bangalore that I had never been to.

~ I went to Fort Kochi.

~ I became the owner of a Kindle.

~ Watched someone deteriorate and die from cancer, slowly, at very close quarters. It was a first for me, and it impacted my life hugely.

~ I quit work to become a full-time homemaker and freelance content writer and editor. (I realise I haven’t written about this yet!)

~ Successfully completed two photography challenges, one in July and one in December

~ Heard Gulzarji, Prasoon Joshi and William Dalrymple speak live and unfettered at the Bangalore International Literature Festival. What a treat!

Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next?

Like in 2012, I didn’t make any resolutions for 2013. I chose a word for the year – ‘better’- and chose a few broad areas of my life to apply it to. I would say I have been 50% successful in this.

For 2014 too, I choose the word ‘better’. It still needs some doing.

What date from 2012 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?

March 8, 2013. It was a very special day for me, among others.

What was your biggest achievement of the year?

Keeping off all the weight that I lost last year. Knowing me, that is a BIG achievement.

What was your biggest failure?

Not travelling enough.

Did you suffer illness?

Let’s just say 2013 was not my best year health-wise.

Whose behaviour made you appalled and depressed?

That of some of our relatives and the society in general. The same as last year.

Where did most of your money go?

In books, food, and exploring the city.

What did you get really, really, really excited about?

My trip to Kanha. How could I not?!

What song will always remind you of 2013?

Lungi dance and tattad tattad. No, not my favourite songs, not at all. These are the two songs that got stuck the most in my head in 2013, and will always remind me of the year gone by.

Compared to this time last year, are you happier or sadder?

I think I am at the same place.

What do you wish you’d done more of?

Brushing up on my general knowledge. Travelling. Social interactions. Meeting up with friends.

What do you wish you’d done less of?

Worry. The same as last year.

Did you fall in love in 2012?

Yes, with a lot of different people, with a lot of different places and things, at different times.

What/Who was your greatest musical discovery?

This song.

What did you want and get?

Maintaining the same weight levels. Better cooking. Better reading.

What did you want and not get?

More and improved writing on my blog. More travel.

What was your favourite film?

English Vinglish.

What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

I turned 31! Gosh! I took the day off work and spent a relaxed time at home, then went out for a lovely dinner with the OH at Toscano.

What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

A child.

What kept you sane?

Reading. Writing. The OH. Amma. Exploring. The little beautiful moments in the midst of the chaos of everyday life.

Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2013.

As I was saying in the last post, I realised in the last year, time and time again, that we are all living on the edge, all of the time. Life is short, and every minute of it should be lived to the fullest.

Which new place/s did you visit in 2013?

Vidyarthi Bhavan, St. Mark’s Cathedral, the Chitra Santhe, Safeena Plaza – all in Bangalore. Fort Kochi and Kanha, too.

Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.

Geet gaata hoon main, gungunata hoon main