Quotes I've Lived by in 2014

As January 1st rolls around we are all left to reminisce on the good and, quite honestly, the bad that has happened in 2014. The times we laughed so hard our sides hurt, and the times we cried so hard we could hardly see. Everything we have experienced in 2014 makes us who we are, so even if this year was absolute crap for you, without it you wouldn't be you.

Personally, 2014 didn't treat me too well. I'm not saying it totally sucked; I created oodles of wonderful memories with my beautiful, unparalleled friends and family. I went to bed with a smile on my face more often than not. I laughed. I went on vacation, and when I got back to school I did fantastic and ended first semester with a 4.1. But a few short months really put a damper on my whole year. During the summer I went through a tough phase of emotions regarding who I wanted to be when I was older. I was very interested in Youtube and Youtubers at the time, and I had it set in my mind that if I wasn't as successful as them, or as my peers, I was a failure. I thought having a large audience supporting you was all you needed in life. Looking back on this now, I feel entirely arrogant and ignorant. There are billions of people on our Earth, some of whom are starving, who haven't a care in the world about how known they are.

Now, after realizing my ignorance, I only aspire to do something with my life that makes me proud. I just want to be content, and get to a point where I am confident enough cease comparing myself with others. I don't care how many likes I get, or how many followers I accumulate. I want to travel and see the world. I want to have a loving family, with a roof over my head, and friends who I can call in the middle of the night. I want to love my career, or my studies, and come home everyday with a smile on my face. I want to be happy, and I want to spread happiness like sunbeams.

  That is what I want for 2015, and for the future in general: to radiate positivity because my body is overflowing with it.

In order to get to this point of realization, I relied very heavily on the words of others. Whatever they said I took to heart. I would spend HOURS searching Google, Tumblr and Pinterest for inspirational quotes that I hoped would pull me out of the rut I was stuck in for months. I would save every one I came across to my computer, so now I have a huge gallery of inspiration for when I am down. I believe this act of obsessively saving quotes is what saved me from becoming depressed. Words possess a special  power that can meld minds more powerfully than anything else in existence. These magic phrases pulled me back onto my feet and set my mind in the right direction.

So, in an attempt help you start off your new year with a positive mindset, I re-wrote some of my favorite quotes with my calligraphy pen, took pictures, and inserted them below (be warned that I only got my calligraphy pen a few months ago, so I'm not very good... but I tried!). I based my new mindset almost entirely on the quotes I am sharing below, so I hope they help you create yours. I lived by these sayings in 2014, and plan to again in 2015.

I hope these quotes make you smile and think. Wouldn't it be fantastic if we could all start off the new year with a fresh outlook on the world, one of optimism and acceptance? What a wonderful planet this would become.

Here's to a Happy New Year!

After writing all these quotes 3 or 4 times (I messed up a lot!), my hand got a bit tired and my paper started to run thin. So, I will just type a few more good'uns below! xx

"Don't compare your chapter one to someone else's chapter twenty."

"Worrying won't stop that bad stuff for happening, it just stops you from enjoying the good."

"Be a thunderstorm"

"In a gentle way you can shake the world."

"Be somebody who makes everybody feel like a somebody."

"Don't let anyone rent a space in your head unless they're a good tenant."

"Whatever you decide to do, make sure it makes you happy."

"We don't have to do it all."

"A flower does not think of competing with the flower next to it. It just blooms."

See you next year. Thanks for everything.

Emily xx