Happy New Year everyone! We made it through 2021! We’re still in a pandemic and in fact, we’re experiencing another surge of cases here in the Philippines. But I choose to feel hopeful about this brand new year. I’m almost always hopeful every new year. It is a blank canvas. A clean slate. But before we move forward, it’s always good to look back at the year that was. So here I am, writing about my 2021 wrap-up.

My Word for the Year 2021

In 2021, I chose to feel guided by the word ABUNDANCE. Well, actually, there were three words: ABUNDANCE, HEALTH and GROWTH. But as time went by, I realized it was the word “abundance” that I was really drawn too. It was the first word I thought of when I was trying to think of the word(s) to define my year. It stemmed from my 2020 experience where I suffered financially and I thought of how much I didn’t want to go through that again.

And you know what? When I chose to feel abundant, I saw abundance in my life! I saw it on work opportunities that came to me without seeking it. It manifested in my relationships. And even got an abundance of pets! And of course, I saw it manifest financially.

Things I Am Thankful For in 2021

  • Continued work. In this time where we live in uncertainty due to COVID-19, I’m glad I still have work to pay the bills, some of my needs and wants.
  • Vaccines developed and being vaccinated. Vaccines protect us from getting a severe COVID-19 infection and hospitalization. Without this, I also wouldn’t be able to feel somewhat comfortable to go out and meet people again.
  • My pets. Last year allowed me to appreciate having pets. They help make living in a pandemic so much more bearable. Remember when I blogged about my cat, Lucky? Earlier this year, we got ourselves a dog. Just as unexpected and unplanned as Lucky. Showie came to live with us in February. She was our tenant’s originally and often hung around our house because we give her a lot of food! But when our neighbor got called away for work, Showie just ended up living with us. She chose us.
  • My family and friends.
  • The chance to attend mass again physically. For a few weeks before Christmas, we were able to see a low number of confirmed daily cases and so mom and I were able to resume our Sunday routine pre-pandemic of hearing mass at church.
  • Mom’s good health.
  • All the entertainment I have on hand from books, the Intertnet and streaming apps. They all got me through the strict lockdown days.

2021 Wrap-Up Highlights

Got my blog, Pieces of Liz, self hosted. After thinking about it for quite a while back in 2020, I made the jump to go self-hosted with GreenGeeks. It’s all part of investing on my blog because I wanted to earn more from this.

Started another blog, Liz in the City. It’s more on my adventures in the city because I love that there’s just so many things you can do here.

My family got vaccinated against COVID-19. In the coming week, we’ll all get our booster shots too.

Achieved my 2021 GoodReads Reading Challeng goal. I read 20 books in total for 2021.

Found a new home workout I like. Every morning, I’m usually doing yoga thanks to free Youtube videos. I like Yoga with Kassandra especially her 10-minute stretching videos. It helps me so much on busy days and lazy days because I still get to move my body.

Christmas get-togethers with friends

Went to Marikina for a Christmas get-together with Ver. It’s her side of town. We dined at Fino Deli.

Our new pet dog, Showie. She’s such a smart and sweet dog. Whenever my mom and/or I go out and return home, she’s always jumping for joy when she sees us. I love hugging her because she’s so big and furry.

And finally for this 2021 highlights wrap-up

  • Started a small book business, Readers’ Den MNL. We sell coffee books that I find so interesting I want them myself!

Series that Got Me Through 2021

Since there are still no travels for me this year to include in my 2021 wrap-up, let me just share some of the series that got me through 2021:

  • Homeland. I only discovered this series this year. It stars Claire Danes as a CIA analyst. A spy series basically.
  • Modern Family. I re-watched the entire series from Season 1 til Season 11. This is such a funny and heartwarming series.
  • Fear the Walking Dead. This is supposed to be a prequel of The Walking Dead which I never saw. I thought it was going to be scary since it’s about zombies. But it’s not. Although the story is interesting. I’m waiting for Season 7 on Amazon Prime.
  • The Boys. Superheroes as villains and ordinary guys as the real heroes? Exciting series! It’s from the creator of one of my all time favorite series, Supernatural, Eric Kripke.
  • The Vampire Diaries. I didn’t get to finish this series on Netflix so I’m glad HBO Go got it!

There are no significantly big events in my life for the second year in a row. But I’m glad about the events that happened in my life. I think I was able to make the most of it despite the pandemic. How was your 2021?