Sooo… what a year we had. Between still being in the pandemic and Mercury being in retrograde the whole time, this year felt like a new Jumanji-level unlock.
“Hope Smiles from the threshold of the year to come / Whispering 'it will be happier'...”
–Alfred Tennyson
Chapter 2022… You Can Rot in Hell
Let's just say this: I started and ended 2022 with COVID. This was a "fun year", with a heavy dose of sarcasm and irony. This was a tough, rough year. Period. And probably has been saying this for the past 25 years (meaning: all my life). No, but seriously. This year felt like the Middengard Wyrm was chasing me. This year has been exhausting, depressing, and with a bit of anxiety as the cherry on top. I would probably not fuss about it so much if every person I have talked to this year has said somewhat the same: this year sucked. Fun fact: if you Google search "why 20…" the first thing that pops up is "why 2022 is the worst year", a coincidence? I don't think so.
Maybe it was because we were emerging from the ongoing pandemic, if the gods above decided to have fun with us, or if Mercury was in retrograde. But it was hard on all of us. We didn't have time to breathe and relax or stop our ongoing obsessive thoughts; we were thrown into a chaotic tornado of chaos, stress, and anxiety.
And I don't have an answer as to why it was hard. It simply was. It was a year with a crisis all around us, with losses and painful moments.
Thanks, Bookstagram… Let's Welcome 2023 Together
However, it was also a year of change, of seeing life with new lenses. And I can thank almost everything to Bookstagram and the community we have made here. I'm such an emotional ball of tears right now writing this. But it's true. I'm not joking when I say I wouldn't have made it this year if it wasn't because of you.
I started my Bookstagram a little over a year ago, and I can say that decision changed my life forever, definitely in a good way. When I started this account, I was coming out of a reading slump for years, actually more of a life slump. I lost myself over the years, walking endlessly and like a robot. It wasn't until I started reading ACOTAR that the weird algorithm of Instagram introduced me to this incredible community. I finally got my found family. My Valkyries. My friends.
I know it has been a rough year, but I truly feel that even though it was a horrible and stressful year, you still made me smile at the end of the day. You helped me wake up and get out of bed because I wanted to vent my rant about my reading. We started Bookstagram because we wanted to share our love for books. Here we find people who became true friends, with whom we share our struggles, desires, daily things, and, of course, our fictitious boyfriends and husbands.
We may not post every day or have millions of followers, but one thing is for sure, we have our friends here, and I wouldn't want it any other way. I am so freaking glad I decided to open Bookstagram and find you. To be able to rant and vent, but more importantly, to be heard and seen as a person and friend.
So thank you. Thank you for making this miserable year into a better one.
Thank you for being my friend, even if I spam you with reels, videos, audio, photos, art, and rants about books and life. That's how I show my love and friendship haha.
No, but seriously. Thank you for being there, for always replying to my DMs, and for sharing our love for books. Thank you for venting and ranting about the books you love. For giving me updates and wild theories. For fantasizing about having a book boyfriend in our lives.
Thank you for being my friend and Valkyrie.
I wish you a Merry Christmas (or Happy Hanukkah) and a great New Year.
May you keep wishing to the stars who listen.
I can't wait to see how much your TBR grows in 2023.
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