2013 was a pretty big year for me, a lot of things happened both bad and good and it's certainly been a year to remember.
The new year started much as the next one is set to; filled with essays and uni stress! But soon after the deadline I experienced one of my favourite weeks of 2013. You can read about my trip to London, featuring the amazing Harry Potter Studio Tour here. I still struggle to form sentences to fully explain how magical and wonderful this place is, and I couldn't recommend it more. Hopefully I'll visit again in 2014.
As it was my final year at university, a lot of my time was taken up by writing essays, but another huge part of my life in 2013 was the dance society. I finally joined a society that I managed to stick with (after unsuccessful attempts to start up trampolining and get involved with the uni figure skating team in my first and second years respectively) and it made a massive difference to my university experience. It allowed me to do something I've always loved, while making some amazing friends and brilliant memories. Again, I can't wait to see what 2014 has to offer in this part of my life.
After three years of hard work, I finally graduated in July. It certainly wasn't easy and in my first year especially I had a lot to deal with alongside the actual work, but I graduated with a high 2:1 with no resist, no fails, and no mitigating circumstances or essay extensions, something that I'm incredibly proud of myself for. Considering my school teachers told me I'd never get into university, and pretty pleased with myself. Shortly after graduating I also received my final offer for my MA which I started in September. After failing my A levels several times I don't think I've done too badly. My graduation was such a lovely day, and definitely a highlight of the year! You can read about it in more detail here.
A couple of days after my graduation I jetted off to Majorca for my second holiday of the year. It was my first summer holiday abroad in three years and it was lovely to spend a week being waited on hand and foot while doing absolutely nothing but lay in the sun all day. I know it's not everyone's idea of a good holiday, but it was exactly what I needed and I loved it!
As I mentioned before, in September I returned to uni to start my Masters degree, and while it's not been easy, I know that it was the right choice to make for me, and I have absolutely loved being back. I also started my first 'proper' job as a Retail Operative at Primark. Whoever said there is no such thing as a stupid question has clearly never worked in retail, because if I never publish a fiction novel, I could definitely fill a book with ridiculous things I've been asked, and I've only been working there three months! Although it's not a massive one, it's nice to have a guaranteed wage going into my bank every month and money that I can spend on whatever I like.
Although I have had some amazing times in 2013, it's also been very challenging at times. In terms of health, this year has probably been my worst. While I have always struggled with anxiety and panic attacks, they developed from being a small part of my life to one of the biggest, and something that controlled almost every decision I had to make, and made even travelling into town a big challenge. While it's certainly not easy, I am not allowing it to control my life any more, and I'm determined to have a very happy and healthy 2014 that I'm completely in control of.
Overall I've had journeys end and new ones begin throughout the year and some parts of my life have changed massively. I can't even imagine what I'll have to write about this time next year but I'm definitely looking forward to everything that 2014 has to offer for me!
What were your favourite moments of 2013?
Thanks for reading,
Tilly.
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