2021 - The Year of Being STRONGER
What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, right?
2020 was a year of ups and downs, highs and lows, loss and new life. It was a year of being on a rollercoaster that no one was in control of. A few weeks ago I talked about my New Years Resolutions (you can read the full article here), and the last one was “to be stronger” where I mentioned full details of this would be launched on February 7th. Well, here we are, and I am starting out this years first collaboration with a company I am extremely passionate about and grateful to be given the opportunity to work with and tie into my goals for this year.
STRONGER is a company who believes being yourself is the key to unlock your full potential. Every piece of their collection is designed to make you Escape the Ordinary. They believe if you are the true version of yourself in every facet of life, you will look as beautiful as you feel.
When the clock stuck midnight on January 1, 2020, a new decade and a new year had just begun. Lots of people, including myself, said “New Year, New You.” There was so much potential to begin again, we were given another day, another chance, to be everything that we want to be. Shortly after, the world was turned upside down and shaken. Hopes and dreams for the new decade were postponed, trips were cancelled, loved ones were lost. But one of the greatest things to come out of 2020 was a new perspective.
For the last few years I always have a “word the year” related to my hopes, dreams, aspirations, desires, anything I want the year to bring. What you put out into the universe comes back like a boomerang, right? Think about gravity. You toss a rock into the air and it comes back. Why can’t energy be the same? 2019 was my year of “Yes”, where essentially anything within reason, I said yes. So, when I was trying to think of what my word the year would be for 2021, there was only one thing I could think of: strength.
2020 tested me in more ways than I can explain. It pushed me to question everything and everything to question me. I have always been an athlete, I played division 1 volleyball in college, I normally run 4x a week on top of pilates, yoga, and strength training, but when the world shut down, I had no passion or desire to be strong. As the year continued to push me and challenge me, I felt defeated. I was living trying to make it to the next day, if you can even call it living. I was simply existing. But when it came time for a new year, the same motivation that always encourages me, New Year New You, came back around and the only thing I could think of was to be STRONGER.
Remember that boomerang effect I was mentioning? It came back full circle when I learned I was going to be collaborating with a company I have not only loved for years but is also a women’s empowerment and lifestyle brand. Working with STRONGER is a collaboration of dreams and I couldn’t be more excited. I love this brand, the quality of their clothing and how you truly feel stronger while wearing it. It inspired me to be active and confident.
What does being stronger mean to me, you ask? Being stronger doesn’t just mean physically, but also mentally. After one of the most difficult years of my life (and many others lives) where essentially everything fell apart, I learned the hard days make you stronger and the bad days make you realize what a good day is. How can we come out of 2020 and not be stronger? This year, I promise to be strong enough to stand up for myself, to stand up for others, to be strong enough to make it through the good and the bad days, to be strong enough to pick others up when they need it, and stand by their side when they don’t. I want to be strong enough to pick up my own pieces when things inevitably fall apart again. I want to be strong enough so I don’t have to rely on others for happiness. I want to be strong enough to be me.
After the pieces fall apart, you pick them back up and build a stronger, better version of yourself. So, 2021 - I welcome you with open arms, a full heart, with room to grow but stronger than I ever knew I could be.
Because what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, right?
STRONGER was gracious enough to give me a coupon code for y’all, so you can use “KPMENZIES20” for 20% off your purchase.
