Twenty-five was one of the best years to date. I married the love of my life, started making our little apartment our home, and reached new heights and depths of creativity. Shortly after getting married, I was telling a friend I felt like I was living an answered prayer. She sent me this text later that night, which pretty much sums up the essence of this year. 

And. 

I would be remiss if I painted a picture of a rosy, perfect, easy trip around the sun.

This year was also hard. Really freaking hard. For so many reasons, it was a year of survival and trial. But isn’t that life, though? The good and hard, joyful and painful thrown together in a mixed bag we unpack day by day, year by year.

It was beautiful, brilliant, and a dream come true in a million ways, and it was also forming, unexpected, and overwhelming. Between buckets of change—we’re talking Gatorade-cooler-dumped-on-the-coach-sized buckets—and the joy (and infancy) of a new marriage and new jobs, this year has stretched me in ways I never imagined I could stretch. And by the same token, God healed me in ways I never imagined I could heal. 

This was a year unlike any other, and I am so grateful for all of the grit, grace, and hard-earned perspective I’m carrying with me into 26. Life is so beautiful and hard, mundane and delightful, challenging and rewarding. And as I’ve told the Lord over and over, I’m so grateful for this one life He gave me.

Here are 25 things I learned this year—really, truly, deeply learned, experienced, and saw in a new light.

1. God has more joy in store for us than we can even imagine.
2. This too shall pass. Rephrased, every hard season has an end.
3. Less is more.
4. I feel so much better without sugar or alcohol. 
5. I can’t judge someone based on what they post online. There’s so much going on behind the scenes that I’ll never know.
6. Progress over perfection.
7. God can change anything in an instant.
8. Marriage is a gift. A hard, fun, growing gift.
9. Not every day is promised. Each one is a treasure. 
10. No one can steal my joy, peace, or creativity. If I feel like they have, I’ve let them.
11. Saving > Spending
12. I am allowed to go at my own pace. 
13. There’s always beauty on the other side of trusting God. 
14. Decisions we make now as a married couple are laying the groundwork for years to come. 
15. I don’t have to apologize for having chronic health conditions and/or not being able to keep up with others. 
16. I’m a dog person!
17. I need creative mentors to help birth the creative + writing dreams within me. 
18. If I let Him, God strengthens me more and more each day.
19. Turning off my phone is great medicine.
20. God is always working in + around me. 
21. Endurance is earned through the fire. 
22. All I can do is all I can do. 
23. Worrying about anything beyond today is pointless.
24. I love color!
25. Life just keeps getting better.

What lessons stuck out to you? What have you learned in the past 365 days? Leave a comment below to add to the list of shared wisdom! 🤎