First, let's take a look at the things that have constructed my personal 2012.
January
Returning to college for my second semester was easier than I anticipated. Although I knew I had some GPA fighting to do thanks to a couple challenging 1st semester classes, I took the experience I'd gathered, turned it into confidence and buckled down for another rough group of classes. In the middle of the month, I finally finished churning through the mass of excellent items from the previous year and presented them in my Best of 2011 here on Slick Gimmick.
February
When I turned 19 in February, I found out that a college birthday is much different than a high school birthday. Fortunately, I also found out that I had gained the new college friends that I had been lacking the semester before and while no serious birthday plans were made, the loving acknowledgment I received from these people was enough to make my day. That, to me, was critical as I continued to build upon my college success and sociality.
March
March saw one of the most momentous video game releases of all-time. As the epic conclusion to an engaging trilogy, one might equate Mass Effect 3 with The Return of the King of Lord of the Rings or Return of the Jedi of Star Wars. As silly as it may seem for you non-gamers, the story and visuals of that game inspired me to a new level of imagination. It's not to hard to create characters, to create a story, but to create an entire world with complex interactions and causation...in March, I was reminded of my greatest desire: to be creative, to create.
April
The days in April went quick with my focus on study. With my youngest sister turning 13, I was in a house of teenagers. I began to crackdown on mission papers, hoping that my timing would result in an August departure so there would be no conflicts with school. Turns out, it wouldn't all go as hoped.
May
I finished up college butt-kicking with my last final on May 1st. My summer has basically been from that day until now. That's right, a full six months with no school, no job, not much of any stress at all ... well except for my physical exam papers getting lost in the mail, setting me back three, arguably four weeks in the mission process. Thanks to that break, however, I feel satisfied now; I feel ready. I know that if there's anything I missed out on, it was my own fault. I've had plenty of time to enjoy myself and the time for activity and dedication is overdue.
June
At the beginning of June, I played with the Young Single Adult Stake of Salt Lake City at the Conference Center in what I consider my favorite viola-related performance. A week later, my dad and I beat Diablo 3 (yeah, my dad's awesome), making it the first game we've completed together. On June 20th, I finally received my mission call and found it to be the perfect one for me. Traveling to my grandparents' birthplace for the third time elicits more excitement, faith, and confidence in me than any other result could have. I began brainstorming the things I wanted to get done in the 4 month wait ahead of me.
July
At the end of June and into July, I went to New York City for the first time for my sisters' dance competition, which is the biggest of its kind in the world. I marveled at the 9/11 memorial site and the rising Freedom Tower, saw some places I knew from television and films, found myself starstruck when encountering several internet personalities I like, and had a special moment with a particular song beside the Statue of Liberty. On top of all that, in what was probably the most memorable moment of the year, I cheered for my sister when her dance won the overall highest prize in the competition against nearly 200 others. Still gives me chills. All the while, I considered the bar in my chest as we passed our anniversary and I finally became able to transition from sleeping every night on the couch to my bed.
August
August 1st, I went to a live concert of my favorite band, the Dangerous Summer. Their noise quality at the venue was a downer, but I enjoyed seeing them again all the same. I also enjoyed watching many amazing bands perform at Lollapalooza via YouTube. Aside from that, the month was mostly filled with the departures of my two best friends and with Olympics-related events; I cheered for the US, Germany, and Iceland as always.
September
In September, I received my endowments at the Bountiful Temple. On that day, more than ever before, I was motivated in this endeavor to serve a mission. To be honest, at the beginning of the year, I didn't think it was something I wanted to do. Even now, I'd rather stay home, but I've been blessed enough to realize that these two years aren't time taken from me as much as they are time given to others. Unity is the single most inspiring thing to me, so working to unite the people of Germany in the greatest of unions will be unmatchably rewarding in my mind.
October
In October, I saw my sister dance as a Co-President of the Woods Cross High Dance Company. I heard some incredible news from President Monson at General Conference. I did all of the German-studying, music listening, and people visiting as I felt the need to. I saw The Jezabels perform with my two good friends in what was one of the best nights of the year. I was there when we got rid of our loveable dog, the saddest moment of the year. More relative to this post, I gathered the most desirable things from the year in a makeshift, self-bought Christmas. I had my mission farewell, and now this: the summary of it all. I leave on Halloween, the very last day of the month. With my four last days, my desire is to say all that I want to say, which includes everything you find here.
November and December remain unwritten and, in truth, I consider these next few days the end of the year and November 1st as the beginning of a separate time. With that, let's get to what this is really all about. I haven't had as much time to ponder these things as in previous years, nor have I been able to acquire all of it that I wanted to experience. Nevertheless, I loved every second of it and I'm ready for you to experience it now.
Here it is.
After ten months of searching, feasting, and constantly wondering how this year's best memories would line up, I present to you my 4th annual personal award show, my champions of emotion and artistry, my very favorite things in this, the most definitive year of my life:
The Best of 2012
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