A new year has come again and another has pass. 2011 was a year of good and bad, but overall, it was one of my best and most memorable years. I learned a lot about myself and narrowed down what I want and who I want in my life. As the year kicked off, I went through a break-up; a surprise to us all, including myself. I’ve always had high hopes for the relationship I was in, but evidently, things changed. It was a sudden and drastic change, and at first, I was unsure of my decision. I figured it was impulsive and I wasn’t thinking straight, but as time flew by, I felt no regret and worries. I am only stating this because I just can’t say that I don’t love where I am today. After my break-up, I did date shortly here and there and finished my freshman year at Dominican. In the summer, I was committed to finding my first job and spending quality time with my family and best of friends. Although it wasn’t our number one pick, Forever 21 hired both me and my best friend, Gabby, during our interview. We were thrilled because we got to stick together and knew we’d have one hell of a summer. If anyone were to tell me I’d meet my next boyfriend during this time, I would’ve told them that there was no chance. If anyone had told me he would be a coworker at F21, I would’ve said that they were crazy.

I remember the first time Tony introduced himself to me and he was just another one of the twenty coworkers I had met on my first day. Just another face with a name. A few days later, he walked up to me and asked “What was your name again?” Yeah, you could say that was the day I knew I had myself a keeper…

I’ll skip all of the cheese with my love story and simply state that I am incredibly happy. With the new year here, my relationship will reach half a year and I find myself falling more everyday. It’s crazy how things can dramatically change within a short amount of time. Through all of this blinding love, my first semester of sophomore year has reassured me that being a nurse is what I want to be. I have grown the utmost respect and appreciation for the profession and am ecstatic for my first round of clinicals in 2012 come second semester. In addition, I am so blessed for the family, friends, roommates and neighbors I have.

With this being said, I am grateful for an amazing year. I have high hopes and goals for 2012 and am hoping to balance my classes, clinicals and my new job at the Autistic Treatment Center. I will be working with a loving 5-year-old boy named Luigi and I can’t explain how passionate and excited I am for it. Besides the normal New Year Resolutions of a high GPA, staying fit, keeping organized and saving money, there is one in specific I feel is perfect for my constant stress.

“Stop worrying so much. - Worry will not strip tomorrow of its burdens, it will strip today of its joy. One way to check if something is worth mulling over is to ask yourself this question: ‘Will this matter in one year’s time? Three years? Five years?’ If not, then it’s not worth worrying about.”