Goodbye 2023, Hello 2024!

A non-conventional New Year Resolution

2023 first made sense to me in 2013. At that time, I applied for a passport to study abroad as an exchange student in the US. When I examined the newly printed passport on my hands, I noticed the expiration date was 2023, ten years later. “2023 is so far away,” I thought. “I must have done a lot by then.”

Now, looking back at the end of 2023, I bid farewell to my 20s and was more confused than ever. All past years, I have been racing with peers, with others’ expectations, and with time. I kept running towards the next destination until a huge sense of emptiness hit me, and I filled it with other milestones to achieve.

All my past New Year resolutions shared the same core of becoming a better self, with variations in the specifics. It seemed natural to chase behind endless titles: a top student, a well-known university graduate, a Ph.D., a high-performing employee, etc. Even though these may not be what I truly want, I need these titles and outside recognitions to find my position in the world.

Until I realized all these titles and achievements seem blurry and unimportant in terms of answering the question I have been thinking about the whole year: Who am I?