Hello,

How are you? It feels like a loooooong time since I last sat down to write a blog post! I have had a busy few weeks between one thing and another, so I am so happy to finally be finding the time to sit down and write something. 

Today's post is a little life update thingy. To cut a long story short, at the end of January I thought it would be interesting to challenge myself to a whole month without using twitter and instagram. I feel like it can be really, really easy to fall into the trap of wasting so much time scrolling through social media. It's addictive. 

Although I think that social media can be an amazing thing, I do feel that it comes with a lot of negativity! I decided to see whether I could go a month without really using twitter and instagram. Ten days in and...it's actually going really well!

Two things I want to clarify; I am still using another twitter account I have which is dedicated solely to my academic interests, and I am also having to check instagram occasionally just to check whether I have received any DMs (but that literally takes me one minute!) Otherwise, I have been without it! I was scared at first that it would make me feel out of the loop, but I can't tell you how refreshing it has actually been. I have come to realise just how much you can get dragged into the world of social media and find yourself relying on it for reassurance of your self worth! It can be so toxic when you get too caught up in it. I definitely need to spend so much less time on it in the future. 

Anyway, that's a little update to explain why I have been so quiet online recently!

I hope you're all keeping well.

Haia,

Oh wow, January draaaaaaaaaaagged. That being said, I do hope you have all had a pleasant month! I thought I'd share some of my favourites from the past month because I always love looking back at my old favourite posts! It's also really lovely to get to share all of your favourite things with others! 

Strangely, this month it has been Sunday evening TV that I have enjoyed far more than Saturday. It has been so lovely to watch one of my all-time favourite shows, Call the Midwife followed by Les Mis. The BBC adaptation of Les Mis, based on the novel rather than the musical, has been rather special; so dramatic, heartbreaking and just wonderful. The cast of this adaptation are phenomenal!

Call the Midwife, of course, remains to be one of my favourite programmes; so heart-warming, emotional, heartbreaking, educational, hopeful and really lovely.

Happy February! 

Hello,

It recently hit me that this month marks five years since I started attending 'Zumba' classes. Five years since I realised I wanted to become a 'Zumba' instructor (which I made happen a year later). Five years. That time has flown by, yet it feels like I cannot imagine myself without 'Zumba' as part of my life. I was in such a different place before starting 'Zumba' classes; low in confidence, unfit, unhappy and I hated my body. 

Attending 'Zumba' classes had the most wonderful impact on me...

Not only did it improve my relationship with food, my own body image, my health and my fitness, but it also gave me confidence, friendships and happiness. 'Zumba' has brought so many amazing experiences into my life, so many great people and taught me so many valuable lessons. It is not just about getting fitter, it's about changing lives for the better. There is nothing quite like it. 'Zumba' brings people of all different shapes, sizes, backgrounds and lifestyles together...no judgment, just joy. It is so special. 

I am so proud to now be a 'Zumba' instructor and to get to share my love and passion for 'Zumba' with so many fantastic and inspirational people. I love being part of the 'Zumba' family.

Thank you, Zumba®! Cheers to many more years!

Hello,

I wanted to write a little post featuring some books on my reading list for 2019.
I am hoping that this post will act as a little reminder to myself to actually read them, whilst also (hopefully) giving you some ideas of the books you could add to your reading list.
As an English Literature student, I obviously love literature and reading, but I do find myself only reading course books, or books around the subject. However, I am hoping that I will get the chance to put some time aside to give these books a read this year.
Without any further ado, here is my 'to-read' list.......

Hello there,

Today's post is all about living an imperfect life and embracing personal growth. I am going to try my very, very best to avoid making this post coming across really cheesy and OTT. Wish me luck!

I think that we all know that perfection is not really something that is attainable; nobody can be completely perfect. I do, however, think that this is a fact that is so easy to forget at times, especially as a society that is constantly consuming social media on a daily/hourly/minutely basis. We get so fascinated by other people's lives and how perfect they seem; perfect clothing, perfect job, perfect makeup, perfect figure, perfect instagram etc. etc. 

It can then be so easy to fall into the trap of comparing your not-so-perfect life, with their seemingly flawless and perfect lifestyle. I believe that is a downside of social media; we become so scared to share our genuine sides, our unedited photos, our spotty chin, because we are always striving to look perfect, when in fact, we should just be embracing who we are; celebrating not being a perfect person. I know I might be stating the obvious, but I feel it constantly needs to be stressed.  

GROWTH

I mean, even if the perfect life was a thing.... who would actually want it? It sounds great, yes. Yet, if you have reached perfection, where else have you got to go? You have no room for change, growth or lessons to be learnt. You don't evolve; you don't get to change. Our little flaws are what help us grow as people, we learn from our mistakes and from the not-so-good things that happen. 

Sure, perfection sounds good, but it would be boring. We are all human beings, we all have our worries, failures, insecurities, losses and sadness (of course, successes, happiness, excitement, gains etc too!) - as hard as it is at times to avoid comparing yourself with the illusion of perfection, health and happiness you see on your instagram, you must remember that everyone has stuff going on at different times. 

GREEN AND GROWING OR RIPE AND ROTTING?

I love this question - it's always something that I keep in mind. Would you rather be green and growing OR ripe and rotting? 

It's important to accept that life is a journey; sometimes it's smooth, sometimes it's bumpy. Never be satisfied staying still and never let your worry of not being perfect hold you back. Life is about growth - keep learning, keep living and stop seeking perfection. 

I THINK YOU ARE PRETTY AMAZING...

...that's all. (In the brilliant words of Miranda Priestly).

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE. 

To mark the beginning of the a new year, I thought I'd begin a new blog series. I have been trying to decide where I want this blog to go for a while, and I suddenly got the idea to start a new series. There is something quite lovely about having a series for the blog as it somehow motivates me to post more. It is also a nice way to establish a 'theme' running throughout the blog (even though I never like to limit myself to one specific blog 'focus'). 

After quite a bit of contemplation over the concept of the series, the title, the number of posts I'd like to be in the series, how long the series would last etc., I have finally arrived at the answers, and am very excited to be sharing the details on here now as a little introduction. 

INTRODUCING:

Yes, I know this title: 'the life diaries' isn't exactly groundbreaking. It's simple, and that's why I like it. This blog series will run throughout 2019 and will (hopefully) consist of (at least) 25 posts/episodes. I will be touching on a variety of things; from life advice to fitness advice, from travel experiences to tips on creating a more positive lifestyle etc. etc. etc. 

I am really excited to get started! Let's hope this means 2019 will be the year of a lot more content on Haia Eve. 

I can't wait to share this series with you.