Some of the things I will do in 2025 to feel more present in my life
Hard? Stressful? Entirely fucking dystopian? This past year hasn’t been an easy one for anyone
Well, 2024 you’ve been quite the trip, haven’t you?
There’s one phrase I’ve heard again and again this year, which women of all ages have used to describe their lives over the last year. Start listening for it, and you’ll hear it all the time. Because if you ask a woman how she’s doing, it’s quite likely that between saying she’s fine, totally fine, while also listing some of the challenges in her life, you’ll also hear her use the phrase “It’s a lot.”
I’ve started to think it’s a reflection of how, well, - weird? Hard? Stressful? Entirely fucking dystopian? - life feels at the moment, because 2024 doesn’t seem to have been an easy year for anyone, whatever their circumstances.
And I know, I know, I know, there are varying degrees of what constitutes “easy.” My life is easy. It’s really easy. I have a home, a family, an income, my health, a fridge full of food and heating that comes on at least some of the day. There’s quite a strong chance you have some or all these things too. And yet… life is hard. It’s strange. It’s stressful. It’s complex and maddening. It’s scary. (It’s really fucking scary, let’s be honest, and only gets more scary, the more adult you become, and I actually wasn’t expecting that at all.) And all of us are feeling it.
It's a lot, as we’re all saying.
I am not going to pretend that I know what the answer for this is. I wish I could believe that 2025 was going to somehow, magically, be a lot less, you know, stressful and dystopian, but, well, hmmm, I’m not holding out that much hope.
A year ago, I made the mistake of thinking the year ahead was going to be easier, somehow, than the one before it. As a result, I set out into it, empty handed and slightly lightheaded, wearing flip flops, with a single finger of Twix in my pocket and carrying a half empty water bottle. Rookie error, as they say in America.
This year, I’m going in prepared. At the moment, as I look out across 2025, I think of myself as a bit like someone going into combat, pulling on my flak jacket, straightening my goggles, re-checking that my provision box and first aid kit are strapped to my side, checking my troops beside me are prepared, then fixing my eye on the horizon.
I sadly cannot control whether Putin will detonate the world with a nuclear bomb, or Trump destroy the Arctic drilling for oil, or whether JD Vance will push women even further back into the kitchen, or whether Musk will invade the world with his own form of AI, or whether Farage will ruin Britain with his gross racism (have you noticed the pattern here? It’s all the men ruining our lives, isn’t it?). All that is beyond my control, and yours too.
Instead, I know there are ways I can make my little, localised world around me a bit better. I’ve been thinking about this quite a bit in the last few days, especially since 2024 has ended flat on my back, but not in a good way, since I’ve had pneumonia since Christmas Eve, fun times!!, so I’ve had some time on my hands to contemplate life. So, with the New Year in mind, these are some of the simple and free things I am going to be doing in 2025 to feel stronger, a bit calmer, less anxious, and more optimistic.