The Pages of Our Lives

2022 is coming to a close and these 12 months have been something special.

Every year, as December unfolds I have a tendency to get a little nostalgic, or reflective. I find myself looking through my various journals, and tarot readings, and analyzing how the year was. I'm a dedicated journal-writer, and calendar-keeper, so there is always ample content for me to "study" if you will. Lol, I found myself writing a couple nights ago about how my main purpose on this planet is to learn as much as I can, which means staying dedicated to new hobbies, new goals, (as well as old ones I haven't quite "mastered"). Being a life long student also means being able to review the history of my own life, from my own perspective, which is part of why I care so much about journal writing.

Many people start journals at some point in life and then are worried about how those words will be perceived if found or read by someone else, or if their own perspective changes down the line (spoiler alert: it will) and those words don't feel "accurate" anymore. I felt this way in my childhood & early teenage years. I wrote things down and then ripped them up months or years later upon re-reading because I was like, "wtf is this shit. This is embarrassing, goodbye." If you've done this, or feel this way about writing, I get it. But let me say, I was taking myself too seriously, and you might be too. I wish I had those journals now. I would LOVE to hear my childhood thoughts straight from the horses mouth.

Our thoughts, goals, fears, visions, frustrations, and dreams change drastically. All the time. And there is nothing wrong with that. We learn and discover new perspectives and information throughout our years, and that changes how we think, feel, act, and write

My intention for this blog post was to recap some of the synchronicities I've noticed in the reflection of my calendar and journal from 2022 (though so far it seems to be just be advocating for writing, which is fine too). It is amazing to look back on what I said I wanted on January 1st 2022, and I want I feel I want now, only 12 months later. To see what I said I would do in twelve months, and what I actually did (it's honestly pretty balanced - I hit many goals, and dropped the ball completely on others). I've reflected on how many people I connected with: who I was grateful for, who I got frustrated with, who laughed with me, who laughed at me, and who supported me and loved me, and who I supported and loved back.

It feels relevant to describe my personal writing set-up. I keep a large, black, college-ruled, moleskine journal that I start at the beginning of each year. I write my New Years goals in this, I journal day to day feelings, I keep track of the books I read & my thoughts on them, I document astrological/lunar cycles events, record my personal tarot readings, etc.. When I lived in Arizona and hiked alot I recorded hikes I took: the distance and elevation of them, and so on. These moleskines of mine are the encyclopedias of Malana Bradford. And to some, it might feel a little egotistical to care about keeping a personal history, but I'm not ashamed to admit how thankful I am (to myself) that I have these. I also think that when I die, they will serve as something that the people who love me can feel me through. There are lessons in these books. Some that I gained through living them, other I gained while writing them, and still others that I gain upon reflecting years later. Perhaps someday I'll have children, family, or friends who will gain something by reading them too.

In addition to the moleskine, I have a large calendar-style journal (mine is Day Designer from Target), that I make small use of everyday. This is my place for daily to-do lists, daily gratitude, and outlining weeks and months ahead. The specific calendar I have is perhaps my favorite I've hade yet (so I'm hoping I can find a 2023 replica). Everyone has their own preferences to calendars. I've had many different layouts - some which were SUPER fancy (and honestly doing too much), and others that were too simple and didn't give me any room for more than a basic event calendar. If you're new to this sort of thing, go browse and envision how you'll personally use it. I like having a daily list to check items off but maybe you wouldn't use that. Maybe you want to combine journal and calendar: there are tons of options that give you full pages for each day so you have even more writing space than mine.

There are of course online journaling apps now too, none of which I have ever tried because A. I don't want my most personal thoughts in some massive database, and B. I think there is something really special about hand writing; it allows a certain flow that typing can't mimic. If these work for you great, and they might even group themes and reflections at the end of the year for you, who knows.

Let's get back to the point.

Twenty Twenty Two has been one hell of a year for me. I had a feeling it would be; last December I wrote a blog about the numerology of 2022, and it being a "6" year. Feel free to scroll down and find that one to see how your own year relates to the collective numerology.

I feel so grateful for what's occurred for me in these 365 days. I have:

* Become a certified yoga teacher

* Started a job as an adult ESL teacher

* Gone on a few very fun vacations

* Watched one of my best friends get married

* Watched another one of my best friend's son grow up

* Said farewell (for now) to a friend who moved across the world to Australia

* Fell in love

* Moved in with said love

* Lost my sweet baby Emma (my cat of 6+ years)

* Connected with tons of people through readings and coaching sessions

* Read 32 books

And so much more (if I'm forgetting something major, please forgive me).

Not everything has been sunshine and rainbows, and truthfully if it would have been, I don't think the year would have meant as much to me as it has. But the good has outweighed the bad, and it always will if you're willing to focus on gratitude. "Presence" was one of my goals at the beginning of this year and I think I did pretty well at it. I try to be where I am while I'm there, and feel what's present. Too much focus on the future brings anxiety and too much focus on the past can bring depression. Looking both ways is inevitable, and healthy, but I try to have them be glances rather than stares.

There is a lot more I could outline in detail about the crazy synchronicities of the year, or the astrological alignments, but this blog is already pretty long. Perhaps there will be more to come. Who am I kidding, there always is. But for now: Happy Holidays. I hope you're navigating the season with peace and ease, and I hope 2022 was a good one for you too. Namaste <3