While we often take time to reflect on professional accomplishments and upcoming goals at this time of year, we rarely contemplate those things in the other aspects of our lives. So we did! Check out the team’s ruminations on 2024 (including lots of book recommendations if you’re looking for your next great read!).

What are you most grateful for this year?
Katherine: I’m grateful that my extended family is healthy and that we actually enjoy each other’s company.  We've had some really lovely moments together this year.

Briana: Restorative summer travel to see my college best friend and her family in Saint Louis; my family in Downeast Maine; and a couple trips to Monhegan Island.

What were the best books you read this year?
Caitlin: The Wedding People by Alison Espach; The Book of Lost Names by Kristin Hatmel; Mobility by Lydia Keisling (timely after COP25 in Baku!); The Covenant of Water by Abraham Vergese; and my fave of them all Sandwich by Catherine Newman. Looking forward to 2025 and trying to make a dent on this list of the 100 best books of the 21st century. 

Melia: My favorite books this year were What You Are Looking For is in the Library by Michiko Aoyama; The Road to Dalton by Shannon Bowring; We Alive, Beloved by Frederick Joseph; Mole is Not Alone by Maya Tatsukawa; and For the Love of Lettuce by Courtney Dicmas. 

Kelly: What Cannot Be Said by CS Harris is the latest installment in an historical mystery series (this is book #19!) set in London in the early 1800s and a perfect blend of actual history and classic mystery solving. Notes on Grief by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is a quick but absolutely stunning read written in the wake of the author’s father’s death.  

Katherine: The artist in me is surprised by my top picks because they're both nonfiction: Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt and Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman. Definitely worth a read!

What was an unexpected joy this year?
Melia: Watching baby groundhogs play wrestle and tumble around in my backyard! 

Kelly: My dad started some dahlias for me that grew beautifully in 2023 so I replanted the bulbs this past summer and crossed my fingers. Unlike the rest of my family, I’ve never had a green thumb so was overjoyed when they defied the odds and finally bloomed in early September. It was worth the wait.

Molly: An unexpected joy this year has been learning to slow down. With the arrival of my son in February followed by a career shift, I’ve been overjoyed to take a less hurried pace to life. Time is fleeting and I feel so fortunate to be able to savor each little moment.

What’s one word you want to carry forward with you into 2025?
Caitlin: Focus
Molly: Present
Briana: Expansion