new year feelings

I feel incredibly grateful to have spent most of this year learning, travelling to places for the first time, turning strangers into friends, and expanding my mind and heart in ways I couldn’t have imagined.

I had the precious opportunity to experience so many of the rich manifestations of what being alive on this planet can be. I can safely say that whether it was experiencing typhoons in Taiwan, mega-quake alerts in Japan, scooting through Saigon’s chaotic traffic, or figuring out what being under martial law meant—it’s undeniable that we’re all navigating this intense, uncertain, and extraordinary human experience as best as we can.

While bearing witness to chaos, destruction, and the cruelest sides of humanity, my experience has been that the vast majority of humans are kind, caring, and loving. I’m humbled by the overwhelming (extra)ordinary generosity I received everywhere my feet took me.

This experience, along with the breathtaking landscapes that nourished me over the past couple of months, has given me a fierce hope. I will fight to keep an open heart in the face of fear.

It is our duty to become humans who are worthy of this planet. It is our mission to learn to love the world with eyes wide open to its wonder and its horror. Choosing love, even when pessimism and cynicism are on the table. This love is honest and real—not blind or sugar-coated—but rather one infused with the knowledge, deep in our bones, that we are active creators in this reality. May we take that responsibility seriously, not turning against each other to point fingers, but instead turning that index finger straight back to our own hearts.

It has always taken a lot of love to dance our way through the fire of being alive, and our times are no different. May we use our power wisely.

To everyone who crossed paths with me this year: thank you. You will forever be a part of me and one of the most special chapters of my life.

And to you—thank you for coming along with me. Your presence is truly precious to me. I never felt alone because you were right here with me. Muchas gracias, de todo corazón.

New year blessings from my heart to yours, ily x