2021 recap: Begining of Fearslaying

I changed a lot in 2021. It was a good year. I was terrified that it would be a repeat of the past few years but God allowed it to be one of healing and life.

Yes, there were hard parts. I watched friends suffer incredible pain and was helpless to do anything to change it. There were plenty of times when I was frustrated with the snail pace of my life and annoyed by how little I had done in the eighteen years given to me.

But overall, it was a really good year.

Finished Highschool

I had hoped to finish school in March but it didn’t happen until August. It was very good to be finished and I was proud of myself for getting done early. I’m very thankful that I was able to get it completely done before our move because there was no way I would have been able to do it in all of the chaos that ensured then.

Do Hard Things

I read Do Hard Things by Alex and Brett Harris for the first time that year. (Jehosheba got it for her birthday). It was…amazing. It really made me think about all of the ways that I’m wasting my life. Young people DO have the power and the ability to make a difference. We shouldn’t let our youth or our fear or whatever hold us back from doing the things that God calls us to do. I made a whole list of Hard Things that I wanted to work on that year and am continuing to work on in 2022.

One of the main things that I’m working on is getting over my terror of humans. XD When I was a kid, there was a season when I was fairly outgoing and talkative with strangers/people. But then we moved again when I was eleven and for some reason, I became a hermit. I would literally not talk to any strangers, even if they talked to me and asked me questions. I’m very thankful for the church that we went to at that time because the people were so very patient and continued to try to reach me even when I acted like I didn’t want it.

Anyway, I now talk to people when they ask questions, lol, but I’m really awful in social situations. I’m an awkward person who makes talkative people awkward. XD So I’m working on talking more and asking people questions and reaching out to people, not just waiting until they come to me.

OT Therapy

I went to two OT therapists in 2021. The first lady was really nice but basically treated me like a baby. XD The second lady, Ann, was so amazing. She didn’t talk down to me and it was clear that she loved teens and was going to do her best to help us live the most amazing life that we could.

Alongside helping me not be so sensitive to light/sound/touch/etc. she also constantly pushed me outside of my beloved comfort zone in social ways. It was awkward at first talking to her, but she was so genuinely kind and caring that it wasn’t long before I stopped being terrified of OT appointments. XD

It was Ann’s encouragement and pushing, along with Do Hard Things, that really made me try to break free from my shyness. Still working on that, but it’s getting easier each time I do it.

Spring100

For those of you who don’t know, Spring100 is a challenge where you try to walk/run 100 miles during the spring months. It was my first year doing it, alongside Jehosheba and Mama. It was sooo fun and so motivating to get out and exercise.

I finished with a total of 200 miles. Unfortunately, I also nearly stress fractured my leg from it and had to wear an ugly walking boot for most of the hot (GEORGIA) summer months.

Lovely, eh?

Moving

We decided to leave Georgia and move to Utah. It was supposed to be a simple move, right? Turns out it wasn’t. You can see my posts here, here, here, here about the chaos. Long story short, we weren’t sure if we would even be able to get our house and we stayed in airbnbs for about a month waiting. It was a very unsettling, chaotic time. But God gave us the house and I am so very grateful. Utah is beautiful and I’m so glad that we get to live here.

Sugar Gliders

Ahhh, my beloved sugar gliders. In 2021, I watched two pairs of joeys grow up and leave for their new homes. I also took in two rehome gliders, Ilona and Yiska, and have loved watching them come out of their shells and learning to trust me.

Writing

I grew so much in my writing in 2021. Jehosheba and I joined The Young Writer’s Workshop in January and it has been so helpful. The community aspect is wonderful for accountability. It is super cool to be able to meet other writers and, hey, I even met two other people who own sugar gliders! What’s better than that?

The lessons on YDUBS are really helpful as well. I spent so much of my summer just pouring through them and realizing, “Oooooo! That’s why that portion of my story isn’t working.” It’s so nice to have unlimited support and content at my fingertips.

I finished two novels, three or four novellas, and a few short stories. Jehosheba and I participated in NaNoWriMo for the first time and I was able to write a 94,000 word novel in November. It was massively encouraging because I had no clue I could do that. *nods* We also participated in the Crazy Writing Weeks and the Fellowship Competitions. A lot of writing was done in 2021. Sadly my blog was rather neglected.

It was in 2021 that I first started calling myself a writer. I’ve been writing since I was six years old, but I never thought that I was good enough to even call myself a writer. But this year I swallowed my self-consciousness and I let myself be a writer. *nods* I overcame a lot of writing fear in 2021.

Trips & Vistors

We went on a few trips in 2021. When we went to pick up Ilona and Yiska, we had planned a whole trip to New York and it was going to be awesome. But then Dovid got sick so we decided to just get the gliders and come home. We still had a good, fun trip.

Over the 4^th of July, we went to Tennessee for a day trip. That included delicious food, sweat, cardboard sledding, and art museums.

We also took our scouting trip to Utah. You can read about that here.

We had a few visitors which was really fun. We got to see Nana & Papa, Grandma & Grandma. ❤ We also got to see our friends from Kansas City, the Chavers, and our friends from Tennessee, the Hawkins.

I had the honor of meeting two of my pen pals, Amie and Sara. It was so fun to hang out with them and to be able to see the people who I had been writing to for years!

Other Random Stuff

• I had my sleep study which was…interesting.  It was a day and night study, so I was there for a while. I was so nervous about that, but it turned out to be okay. Mama and I had a lot of fun doing Diamond Dotz’s and listening to Annie Down’s new book That Sounds Fun.

• Baruch got his concussion. You can read about that here.
• Jehosheba, Mama and I got to see Hamilton with my friend Amie. That was amazing. It was such a fun, special night and I’m so so so glad that we could do it!
• I had my graduation party in Iowa on our way to Utah. It was very awkward being the center of attention, but it was so special. ❤

• I also had my eighteenth birthday! It happened over the chaos month in the airbnb but it turned out to be an awesome day.

In 2021, God woke me up to the need to not let fear hold me back from the things that I need to do in life. In the second half of the year, I (very slowly) started to listen and to step out of my comfort zone and do the things that he prompted me to do.

My word for 2022 is fearless. Does that mean that I’m suddenly going to be completely fearless? Ha, no. Not at all. Fear has been in control of my life for as long as I can remember. This year I’m taking steps towards breaking free from that. I’m pushing myself out of my comfort zone.

And you know what? I’m really excited about it.

~Hattush

What was your 2021 like? In what ways did you get out of your comfort zone in 2021? Do you have a word for 2022?