Lifestyle: Another Year Older, Another Month Ahead

I realised recently that I haven’t written here in a while. I'll start with wishing you all a happy new month, and I hope this month, or should I say this year, is kind to us all.

I have not really been active via this platform, not because I had nothing to say, but maybe because life has been loud, heavy, and full in ways that don’t always translate easily into words. And maybe because, like many of us, I’ve been learning how to carry the weight of the world while still trying to show up gently for myself.

(My beautiful Lamberth birthday cake)

I feel like 2025 was so heavy for a lot of people in the world, emotionally, physically and mentally, and I decided to focus mainly on mental health and self-love.

There were moments of celebration, beauty, and joy. But also moments of deep reflection, fatigue, and quiet questioning. Birthdays have a way of doing that to us. They don’t just mark time; they ask us to look back, to take inventory of who we were, who we are becoming, and what we’re still holding onto.

As I step into a new month and another year of my life, I’m not coming in with grand declarations or rigid goals. I’m coming in softer. More honest. More present.

I’m learning that growth doesn’t always look like doing more. Sometimes it looks like pausing. Listening. Letting yourself feel what you’ve been rushing past. Choosing warmth in a world that often feels unbearably cold.

The world feels heavy right now for so many of us.

And if you’ve been feeling overwhelmed, tired, or quietly trying to stay hopeful… Please know you’re not alone. It’s okay to move slower. It’s okay to retreat and return. It’s okay to celebrate yourself in small, meaningful ways; travel, visit interesting places, and take photos because those moments never come again, make wonderful memories, use your time wisely, set healthy boundaries, and prioritise the things you love.

This space, this blog, has always been a reflection of my inner world. A place for beauty, softness, storytelling, and real moments. And I want to slowly return to that. Not perfectly. Not consistently. Just truthfully.

So here’s to a new month.

Here’s to another year of becoming.

Here’s to choosing gentleness, even when the world asks us to harden.

Thank you for still being here.

And if you’re arriving for the first time, here is a warm welcome. I hope you resonate with my little open diary, as I love to call this platform an open diary or letter to myself rather than just call it a blog.

Before I drop my pen, please tell me, how has this start of the year felt for you?

Wishing you all a wonderful week ahead; may it be filled with good vibes and energy.

With Love

Linda Bella

xoxo