A look back on 2023

I think we all can agree, a lot has happened in 2023.
The end of the year is always a time for resolutions and summing up the year.
In a way, so are birthdays.

For me, both come at the end of the year, which adds extra perspective to recalling the year that was and looking forward to the year on the way.

While being born on the 26th of December has some disadvantages– Christmas is a bit of a tough act to follow – in my opinion it has just as many benefits.

On a practical side, I never have to try to remember what year it is; as long as I know how old I am, I add a 20- to my age and I’m golden.

At first, I thought about doing one of those stories, “24 things I’ve learned in 24 years,” but to be totally honest I’m not sure I’ve learned 24 things and if I have I’ve certainly forgotten them by now.

If there is one thing I’ve learned, it’s the importance of family.

This was my first full year out of college and it started down in Georgia.

In January, 2023, I wasn’t able to get back to Indiana to see my family.

Winter sports tend to have holiday tournaments after Christmas – which is why I’m celebrating turning 24 at the Wabash Valley Classic– so my family made the trek down to Georgia and we got to spend the long weekend together.

It was my first time seeing them all since I moved to Georgia and it was fun showing them around my new stomping grounds and reminiscing about our old ones.

One of my favorite memories from that trip was all of us gathered around the hot tub talking about the house search my oldest sister and her husband were conducting, giving college advice to the youngest sister as she wrapped up her time in high school and each family member giving their book recommendations.

In May, I flew back to my alma mater to see one of my best friends graduate college.

It was bizarre going back to a place where I had spent four years but was no longer my home away from home.

I’ll always treasure the graduation party we threw for my friends and classmates and reconnecting with people that I hadn’t realized how much I missed.

Getting to look back on the time we spent together at college, the memories we made, the inside jokes, the late night walks and all the times we supported each other, it felt like coming home to a family get together.

That was the spark that made me want to move closer to home.

Seeing those friends and family helped me realize that as much as I loved Georgia, being so far from the people I love was a challenge and one that I was ready to conclude.

In July, I finished my time in Georgia and prepared to make the move to Linton.

It wasn’t easy, thanks to Atlanta traffic, airport delays and U-Haul issues, but I remember sitting in my car and thinking, “I’m on my way home.”

There’s a lot of favorite moments since starting at the Greene County Daily World; covering Linton and Shakamak volleyball making it to Regionals, all the Friday nights on the sidelines, even the most hectic days where I’m running around all day are made better by an off-hand comment from a coach or parent saying, “Thank you for the coverage.”

Everyone always talks about teams being a family, and an underrated part of my job is getting an up-close view into those families and seeing them grow and change over the course of a season.

I’ll be ending 2023 with family, both those who share my last name and those who have become just as close.

The one thing that I learned this year is that family truly is what it’s all about.

Family can have a lot of different meanings, but I believe if you do it right, it’s an ever-expanding term that includes more and more people as you get older.

I look forward to more joining my family in 2024.