Being surrounded with wonderful and genuine people

 Just dropping by to say that this is one of the best days so far for this year 2021.😊

After a very depressing holiday season, I am so glad I'm finally back at the research institute. Yesterday was my first work day of the year. It was nice to finally be out of my apartment, ride my bike going to work, and see and meet people (aka my labmates and colleagues) in person. And in the evening, as I was about to go home, I saw one of the undergrad students, Joelle, in the lab. We had the usual "How are you? How did you celebrate the New Year?" conversation and then we talked more about various stuff (like literally jumping from one topic to another) and next thing we know, it's already quarter to 9 in the evening! I think we were talking for almost 2 hours! But it was really, really nice to be able to talk to someone again, to have a human interaction, and a good connection. And since both of us are living very close to each other, we both went home riding our bikes, still talking with each other. That kind of moment is really something that I treasure.

And today, she and Quinn (another undergrad student), surprised me with a birthday cake and some gifts. I really had no clue that they will do that. They are just so thoughtful and amazing!💛

The picture above are their gifts for me. And I love each of the item! And the picture below is a gift from our officemate, Ole. She is also one of the closest people I have in the institute. It's just wonderful to meet nice and genuine people even at the workplace. And I'm just excited to read this new book she gave me.

Today, I am reminded that even though I was so down and depressed a couple of days ago, God is surrounding me now with kind and genuine people who bring sunshine in my life. And I am just so so grateful for that!

Life Goals for this New Year

It's the first day of 2021 and here I am in my little apartment listening and singing along to sad love songs. Yes, sad love songs... What a way to spend the first day of the year, right? Last night, after having dinner, I had an intense crying moment again. I just poured my heart out. I cried. I prayed. I talked to God. And I cried more and more. This morning, I still feel sad and lonely but, surprisingly, there's also some kind of peace. I guess, what I'm trying to say is, I'm just feeling all the emotions and hopefully they will soon be replaced with happiness and contentment.

Moving on, the start of the year should be spent with a good outlook of the future and on how we are going to spend the coming months. So for me, my 2021 goals are as follows:

1. Start learning German (which I should probably have started years ago)
2. Start writing my dissertation
3. Finish writing the dissertation by the middle of the year
4. Successfully defend my thesis in the third quarter
5. Find a job before graduating
6. Transfer to a new and bigger apartment that comes with a balcony and a lovely kitchen (I also need to transfer because my current apartment just makes me lonely and reminds me of my past relationship)
7. Create new hobbies and meet new people (this is kind of tricky with this pandemic situation)
8. Find a love that will stay (specifically a man that loves and respects me and will be committed to our relationship and our future marriage)
9. Take and pass B1 German language exam and German Naturalization Test
10. Apply for permanent residency

These are all big things and just thinking about them now really overwhelms me. But it is still good to have some direction in life, right? And I hope that God will continue to give me good health, keep me safe, and give me the wisdom and courage to live life according to his will, and to live life to the fullest.

To anyone reading this, I hope you will have a great and wonderful year! And whatever problem/struggle you have, I hope you will not give up. May you continue to live with purpose.

We can all do this!