I woke up 52 years old on Monday of last week, and this past year has been one of the most challenging of my life. That’s my gut reaction to the proverbial question: “How was 2024 for you?”
Like so many of us, I tend to dwell on the negatives, skipping over the good times—the serene moments, the “regular” days that actually make up a good life. But over the years, I’ve developed a little ritual to reflect on the past twelve months. It’s simple, and I do it at the end of the year, which also happens to be near my birthday.
The tool I use isn’t anything fancy. No cutting-edge app or AI bot. Just the photo app on my phone. That’s it.
For me, my photo app is a visual journal of my year. So, on my birthday (or for you, maybe in late December), I sit down with a cup of coffee, scroll through my calendar and photos, and take it all in. I smile at the high points—of which there were many—and sometimes fight back tears as I revisit the low points.
Life doesn’t get easier; we just get better at handling it. I’ve written and repeated that line many times over the years. It holds up.
I’m not one to dwell on the past—I’m not going that way—but today, as birthday messages came pouring in, I found myself taking stock anyway. I still consider myself a slow learner and a late bloomer, just now realizing that I can have all I need while still going after all I want.
As I went through my photos, looking at milestones I could post or write about, I realized something important: those big, “look-at-me” moments aren’t the ones that matter most. The moments that truly matter are the quiet ones in between.
The ones not captured by a phone, but by my heart: the knowing glance from my wife when no one else understands; the hand on my shoulder from my son; the unexpected call from a friend with no agenda; the hug from my other son, who guards his affection so carefully.
There were dozens of major moments this year, but hundreds of “minor” ones that brought me more happiness and fulfillment than I often realize. Scrolling through my calendar, I can measure and celebrate the big achievements society tells us to prioritize, but it’s the faces, places, and people woven into the everyday that give life depth.
I don’t want to live by a formula. I want to master the middle.
Because what I’m learning is this: it’s how you feel in the spaces between life’s big moments that defines success. It’s in the quiet Tuesday afternoons, the still Sunday mornings, the random Thursday evenings when nothing special is happening, but you’re exactly where you need to be.
Not everything needs to be seen to matter. In fact, the most meaningful moments often live only in our hearts.
If I love you, you already know it. And if you love me, I already feel it. That’s all any of us really needs to know.
Our best days are still ahead of us.
In health,
-Greg
P.S. Last week I mentioned two resources that were invaluable to me and that I wanted to link to: Vivid Vision by Cameron Herold and the Annual Review template. Click on both to download.
