So 2017?

2016: 🍕 I vividly remember sitting in an old and funky smelling pizza place, the typical old diner you’d find down the street in Manhattan.

There we were sitting by the window sill, my good friend J and I ordered a single pizza combo to share (because portions are always huge). We were just staring out onto the busy streets of 14th Street, where people were scurrying by, carrying their bursting brown papers of Trader Joe’s filled with their groceries for the coming week.

J and I found this place after our weekly Sunday church service, after deciding to do some low key exploring of the neighbourhood. We had somehow always whizzed by this area after our weekly grocery shopping at Trader Joe.

Back to the storytelling — After having our usual discussion of the church sermon that week, we somehow moved on to the topic about the future. Turns out we both had the same fear, a fear that had been staring at us in our face for a long time coming now — we were afraid of what 2017 had in store for us.

Truth be told, ever since we got the offer to take on a one-year internship in the glorious New York City, we always knew it had an expiry date. All good things (& bad) had to come to an end.

Then, two months before our “expiry date”, we were afraid of leaving our now adjusted life of New York — having been living and breathing for almost a year in the city and soon needing to return back to our homes halfway across the world.

Simply put, we were afraid that our crazy year in New York would become transient once we resumed our lives back in Singapore, and that our time there would only feel like a dream that never happened.

We were afraid that we would be “comfortable” again back in Singapore, and become that once again lacklustre person who’s afraid to dream big.

What could possibly be waiting in Singapore that would be more exciting and more fulfilling than what we’ve experienced in New York?

This single thought scared us so much, we shuddered each time our brain processed this seemingly ominous predicament. Nonetheless, we reassured each other that we shouldn’t be worrying so much about what we do not know and to just focus on trusting in God that He ultimately knows our futures and he has His best plans for us. (also nonetheless much easier said than done)

It’s now been ten months after returning back to Singapore and we are just two months away from 2018. I really cannot believe the speed at which our youth is just flying by.

2017 Milestones:

That somehow happened without much planning…

1. Returned from New York after one year on the NUS Overseas Colleges programme
2. Worked as the Social Media Coordinator for NUS Overseas Colleges.
3. (Finally) Graduated from National University of Singapore.
4. Didn’t know what to do after graduation.
5. Got offered a Amazon Prime Now internship.
6. Met the most amazing colleagues and manager.
7. Launched Amazon in Singapore together with the team.
8. Registered my startup bantu.
9. Led the pitch for a S$250K social enterprise grant that we didn’t get.
10. At one point, held three jobs at once.
11. Visited Korea (grad trip) & Taiwan and the most memorable times.
12. Offered the role Marketing Assistant at Amazon.
13. Experienced some of the most crazy encounters with God.
14. Still am the other half to the boyfriend, Josh (who has the worst girlfriend)

Well, we have a winner: 2017 has clearly been the most exciting & craziest year of my life yet.

Now, sitting here in the kitchen back in my Singapore HDB flat, I can’t help but laugh to and at myself for being such a worrywart.

Would I say that I’m afraid of what 2018 has in store for me? I won’t lie and say that I am (being the Jiaxin that I am) but this time, I feel a different kind of “afraid” — it’s really a more excited and reassured kind of “afraid”, knowing that my life can only become more exciting and fulfilling. I am excited at what God has in store for me for 2018. So:

2018, bring it on!!!~~~

This piece is dedicated to my good friend & New York mouthpiece, Joel.

& most importantly, thank you to my faithful and loving God in advance for the wonderful 2018 I know You’ll bring me through ;)