And Just Like That, 2022 Has Come To A Close - Dear Luna
Dear Luna,
Two thousand and twenty-three is on the horizon, and I can’t believe another year has come to an end.
You might be wondering what I thought about 2022 and to be honest, I don’t think it’s been the best year in my career but yet I do still believe this year has been important as a stepping stone to understanding who I am and what I want. Making me look forward to 2023 and to coming back home to really begin my journey into becoming a published author.
To celebrate 2022 I thought to go through my favourite memories of each month.
January
It seems so far away that I hardly remember what my favourite memory of this month was, and therefore, I think I must go with cutting my hair. What a perfect way to begin the new year with a new look. It set the pace for the rest of the year that it was about trying new things and to be honest, I have tried a few new things this year.
February
Of course, I had to choose Carnaval for this month. In the south of the Netherlands, where my family is from, every year for one long weekend they celebrate Carnaval. It pretty much means one long party of getting drunk. However, it also means dressing up, as I did as a cowgirl, fairy, hippie, army person, and nerd.
The last time I was in the Netherlands for this time was in 2018 and I was meant to go back three years later in 2021, but of course, Covid cancelled it. So being able to finally do something after it had been stopped for a year was an event many of us needed to bring back normality - even if it meant we had to do a test before… and I ended up with covid.
March
Now, this isn’t my favourite memory, but it is the one that is in the front of my mind, and it is actually a rather sad memory. This month was the month we found out my Opa had a tumour in his head, and even though they took as much as possible out, there is still some there which means he is sadly not getting any better. I decided to add this memory in as a reminder that so many people might showcase their year as 100% fantastic and amazing, leaving out the gray areas, but that isn’t life. Reality shoves everything toward us and there is nothing any of us can do but accept the unknown. But in these moments, it’s also really good to look back at the memories you might have created with a certain person and remember the happiness you shared.
Luckily for us, Opa is still with us and I hope that will not change any time soon.
April
This memory of the month goes to finally seeing The Kid And I in live. An indie band with the main singer being my sister’s boyfriend, Jacob Powell. And to my surprise, I did actually enjoy it. I say I was surprised because the alternative rock he plays is not my go-to music, but you can clearly tell that Powell has truly thought about every single word used in his songs to make sure his audience connects with the lyrics whilst occasionally head rocking.
This specific memory also made me feel as if I was becoming more of an adult, going out on a Friday night to check out a new band is something I had always seen in movies, and it was a joy to do so. And I can’t wait to see more of The Kid and I in 2023.
May
Of course, my favourite memory of May was my birthday and turning 23, where I wasn’t given one or two books but six… can you believe it six books!
My day of celebration was a small one as all of my friends, besides one, were all over England studying. And so on the day of my birthday, me and one of my friends, Elise went out as a pair.
We had no idea what the night will bring but we ended up going to a speakeasy where I met three people who I knew from school and one who was a friend of a girl I met at university (yeah, the world is small)
June
As a late birthday present, me, a best friend, my sister and her boyfriend went to the Doctor Who experience. We had to save the universe before it was too late. We were really lucky with the group we ended up in and at one point all of us were staring at each other and said ‘are we the villain…?' One of the most amazing parts of this experience was when our leader had to steal the crown of Queen Elizabeth the first, we were being chased by the cybermen and passed her as she stole the crown. We screamed, proud she had done this and everyone else in the different groups was confused. But the scariest part was the weeping angels, but this truly was a night to remember.
July
I finally travelled to the north to Manchester where I spent the weekend with one of my best friends, Natalie. I had never been to this city before, and this weekend was a whole lot of fun. On the day we went out, Natalie and I went on a long walk, super long, it was as if we were doing Duke of Edinburgh all over again. That evening we ate Penne Alla Vodka. I mainly sat there keeping Natalie company as she cooked, she is a fantastic cook, she is like Van Gogh when it comes to food, experimental, and always delicious.
Later that night, we and some of her friends from work and uni went out to The Village, this area has many LGBTQ+ bars, and to be honest, we both agreed it was one of the few nights we did not feel self-conscious that some random creep would touch us up.
The night was one to remember, I made new friends, and partied until the birds started to chirp as if I was back at university.
August
After a year of not being able to travel, 2022 has been the year I’ve been out of the UK the most. From January to the mid of April I was in the Netherlands, and even at the end of May, I was back there. And finally this month I was able to go back to the south of Italy, where my family is from, for two weeks, to see my Nonni. And then two weeks in the Netherlands once again.
Although my Nonna e Nonno lives in London, the last time I had been at their house in Italy was in 2018 for two months, so it was a joy to be back and be able to write on the terrace whilst ogling the view of the endless mountains.
And being back in the Netherlands, my cousin and I finally started booking our Asia travels, which I am currently doing now.
September
My cousin came to England to celebrate her 23rd birthday, but something happened on that day — the 8th of September. Queen Elizabeth II passed away. Me, my cousin and my sister still managed to go out to not only celebrate my cousin’s birthday but also the Queen’s life.
We ended up at this karaoke pub where my sister sang and everyone was amazed. Where long love the queen was played (only in the UK this would happen). And I bumped into a guy from school, who funnily enough said to me how he used to fancy me, my sister heard this and was going to come up, but with my hand, I gestured to her that I got this. I said to him, ‘really? Because I recall you telling me to shave my arms because they were hairy.’ He laughed and admitted that might have not been right and said we did have this sort of banter, which was true and he wondered if he could take me out.
It’s funny because at moments you sometimes wish you were with someone but I knew then that I didn’t want that, not right now. I am loving my life being single and to be honest, I don’t want to change that right now. What is funny is my best friend, Natalie, always said how she thought we’d get together. I guess I proved her wrong.
October
One of my best friends, Natalie, turned twenty-four and it was the first time since she turned twenty that we celebrated it together. Twenty-one, she was doing her placement year in Cambridge. At Twenty-two, I was back at home and she was back in Cardiff, finishing off her final year. Twenty-three, she was all the way up at Manchester doing her masters. But this time, we were both a lot closer than before which meant I could celebrate it with her.
Some down moments caused us to stress as someone forgot to buy tickets for this Alice in Wonderland event which meant only we two ended up going. Nevertheless, it was a fantastic night, even though I apparently near killed her.
Let me explain. My mum, at the end of the school year, was given these mini flavoured bottles to make cocktails such as expresso martini, but my mum doesn’t drink so I took them with me and nearly a full bottle of gin. During pres I halved the mojito, the first wrong action, we shouldn’t have halved it we should have had one each. I didn’t measure it properly and ended up putting half of the leftover gin in her red cup and the other half in mine. One sip and Natalie grunted and said ‘are you trying to kill me?'
What was great was managing to sneak a bottle of alcohol into my pirate outfit (as it was Halloween) when we arrived at the club so we didn’t spend any money on drinks.
It was a night full of live entertainment from the wonderland world, with knife juggling, fire, and more.
The way back home was exciting when we nearly ended up walking over two hours as I thought it was a twenty-minute walk when actually that was by car, but we did make it home safely.
November
I think I should mention Winter Wonderland for this one. Before leaving for my travels I knew I needed to see some of my friends. Two of my friends which I met at uni, Emily, who I worked with, and Connor, her boyfriend, decided to meet up and go to this fantastic event held in Hyde park, London.
I’ve been to Winter Wonderland twice, but this was one of the first times I went on the big rollercoaster, which was £9. I know expensive, which is why I never did it before but I am so happy I did it. Also what was nice was Connor and Emily winning a toy for her dog, which just made this trip even better.
December
And now the month we are in! I must say, the memory to choose is the start of our travels. I can’t believe twenty-seven days ago I was on the plane ready to fly all the way to Singapore to start my Asia/Australia travels. Right now, I am on the beach in Phuket, relaxing against the sun, dipping into the warm water, and enjoying the waves.
I still can’t wrap my head around the fact that I am here on the 31st of December in over 30 degrees weather. It feels like it’s the middle of July, but it’s not, it’s December when I should be wrapped up and not in my bikini.
And that is 2022 in a nutshell, a lot of memories, ones I will keep forever. Sure, perhaps some things I wish could have happened, didn’t. Such as signing a book deal, but I did finish writing my first-ever draft of a fantasy novel… Now that is something. But I wonder what 2023 will bring, and I cannot wait to see it.
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