2016 was…interesting. I personally had many ups and downs. Here are a few things I learned:

1. I don’t have to do what I think is expected of me. – This one is really, really hard for me. Whether it be dating, exploring Paris EVERYDAY, or having huge groups of friends, I find it very hard to do what I want without feeling guilty for not doing something else.
2. Sometimes when a group of new friends say a guy is trash, he is. It might take you months and months to realize this, and that’s ok.
3. Sometimes you have to deal with crap and keep going – Literally, I’m an au pair and clean up a lot of poop.
4. IT’S OK TO SAY NO. – I’m still learning this one.
5. If someone makes you feel hard to love, or brings excessive anxiety into your life, it might be better to let them go. – I read a sentiment like this from a friend on Facebook and it just clicked with me so much.
6. I’m not a “party girl,” no matter how hard I try. – I wanted so so hard to be a cool, party hard girl, but it just doesn’t make me happy, nor can I actually keep up with the cool party girls.
7. Adult friendships are hard.
8. I am unable to settle for a mediocre man. – No matter how much easier it would be to do so.
9. I never want to spend Christmas away from family again.
10. I need to and I am able to actually start saving money. – Right now all of my freelance writing goes into savings that I am trying not to (and haven’t yet!) spend.
11. My time is valuable. If I want to stay home and write (or just Netflix, or relax and be alone), I don’t need to justify that.
12. At the same time, I need to make plans with people to get out of the house sometimes. (Which I have been doing, don’t worry mom, I’m not a hermit, just aware of what I need to continue doing)
13. I need to enjoy my time not having a full time job. – Freelance writing is a privilege that I get to do because I only work 30 hours a week!
14. I need to start saying yes to scary things – So I am going on my first solo trip ever to Dublin for my birthday! I’m a bit scared but a bit more excited.
15. Many of my friends here are a couple of years older than me, and, thus, slightly more put together. And that’s ok! I don’t need to compare myself to anyone’s life.
16. I have no idea what I want to do with my life – and that’s ok! – If you read my last post, you probably think I’m busy trying to find work as an English teacher in Asia. Surprise, I’m not. I’m not sure where I’ll be after June/July, and I have no idea what I’ll be doing. But in this moment, I have decided I (probably) don’t want to commit to another year contract (for anything). So, although I don’t know if I will finish my TEFL course and teach English as a full time job, I still have a discount code for anyone interested. If you want a TEFL certificate that will enable you to teach English anywhere in the world, you can go to this link: http://teflbootcamp.com/celina/ and use the password “Celina” for a $30 discount off of already reasonably priced online TEFL certificate programs (under $200!).

This post was a bit all over the place, but so was 2016, let’s be real. So, what did you learn in 2016? Do you have any words of wisdom/advice/you’re a psychic and know what I should do? PLEASE COMMENT. But seriously, share your insights!