24 Hard Things in 2024: A Year in Review

Gravel & I arriving in Seattle after 2+ weeks of driving + camping! 

At the beginning of the year, I shared my 24 Hard Things in 2024 challenge. Before I finalize my resolutions for 2025, I thought I'd revisit and reflect on that list.

24 Hard Things in 2024:

1. Go camping — achieved! Gravel and I are camping pros at this point. Earlier this year, we spent over a month driving from Richmond to Seattle and back, camping at national parks (including the Grand Canyon!), KOAs, and secret hideaways along the way.
2. Finish my thesis — achieved! I successfully defended my thesis and graduated in May. 
3. Bake 1 new kind of bread every month — not achieved.  Life became entirely too hectic with my school, work, yoga, and life responsibilities to maintain my focus on this one after baking a delicious chocolate peppermint loaf in January. 
4. Take 24 photos with Mary that are frame-worthy — potentially achieved? Didn't formally track this one enough to know for sure.
5. Go 24 consecutive days without social media — achieved! I found a great deal of peace this year deleting Instagram off my phone and only downloading when I specifically want to post or view something. 
6. Read 50 books — not achieved
7. Go outside everyday — mostly achieved! 
8. Visit my grandfather more often — not achieved
9. Practice 24 minutes of meditation every week — potentially achieved? I stopped tracking my mat time in such a specific and linear fashion early in the year because I found that it had a negative impact on my presence in general. 
10. Devote each month to the practice & intentional reflection of a yama or niyama (January is ahimsa—non-harming) — not achieved. I plan to revisit this challenge next year after absolutely devouring Nischala Joy Devi's The Secret Power of Yoga this year which has reframed my understanding of the yamas and niyamas. 
11. Try 24 new recipes — achieved!
12. Go on 24 bike rides — mostly achieved! I cannot wait to get back out onto my bike again when the days start to lengthen again. 
13. Take an art class — achieved! Mary gifted me two classes at a local pottery studio in celebration of my successful thesis defense—sooo messy and great fun.
14. Go swimming 24 times — mostly achieved! 
15. Go 24 days without watching TV (extra challenge: consecutively) — not achieved
16. Wear everything I already own (including shoes), or donate it — not achieved
17. Go on 24 runs — not achieved.  I'm not sure who I was when I put this on my list but....LOL. Maybe 2025 will be the year I finally admit to myself that I am not a runner.
18. Eat 24 fruits and 24 vegetables — mostly achieved! I'm confident I achieved this one, but I got tired of tracking sometime in early summer. 
19. Designate Fridays as the 1 day a week to purchase things online — mostly achieved! 
20. Have 24 incredible meals — potentially achieved?
21. Publish a paper in a literary journal — not achieved. I'm proud of myself for working up the courage to submit one proposal in response to a CFP! 
22. Watch 24 documentaries — not achieved
23. Go on an intentional fast — not achieved
24. List every dessert I enjoy, for posterity + 104 desserts challenge (my take on this) — not achieved

For the most part, the things I didn't achieve on this list don't bother me! For challenges like the 24 documentaries or 50 books, I didn't hit that goal number but I greatly enjoyed the books and documentaries that I did consume! And that's the whole point of the challenge. Onto 2025! 

Note from Kate: Hi! If you buy something through a link on my page, I may earn an affiliate commission. I recommend only products I genuinely like & recommend, and my recommendation is not for sale. Thank you!