The Project
At the end of every year since 2000, we invite readers to look back on the last twelve months of their lives and reflect on what has been important, defining or constant during that particular year, and then sum their year up in just 24 words.
We believe that embracing the constraint of summing up the last year in a handful of words helps to focus what has really mattered.
The Background
In December of 2000, I met an old friend for dinner. We hadn’t seen each other in nine years, and hadn’t been in contact for eight. With only a few hours on a chilly evening in London to catch up before his plane left for Canada, we shared our stories in breathless bursts. So much had happened. We had to narrow it down to the essentials.
The best brief biography I’ve ever heard was for a mayfly:
“Born. Eat. Shag. Die.”
Because Ephemeroptera lives only for twenty-four hours, the summary of its life is refreshingly straightforward: To the point. The stuff that matters. Just the essentials.
I realised on the way home from the restaurant that there’s nothing quite like embracing the constraint of brevity (whether time or wordcount) when summing up the last year of your life to make you re-examine your priorities, or focus on what has affected you or was important to you over the last twelve months.
When I got home from seeing my friend, inspired by my evening and the biography of a mayfly bumping around in my head, I asked readers of this site to sum up the last year of their lives in just a handful of words. The Mayfly Project was born.
Due to popular demand, we’ve been running the Mayfly Project at the end of every year since then (here’s last year’s edition). It seems that people have got a lot to say - or rather, that a lot of people have got not a lot to say: twenty-four words, to be precise, reflecting the mayfly’s short lifespan.
Another year has passed, and we’re back again.
The Instructions
Scroll down to sum up your 2007 in twenty-four words. But before you do, check: is it twenty four words? Does it sum up the last year of your life? If not, you’re going to look silly.
Goodbye old, hello new job. Commuting underground, overground, mind wandering free. California dreaming. A series of hospital waiting rooms. Profile building. Camera shutter clicks.
Traineeship over, moved, started MSc., freelance librarian, returned to blogging, got first body modification, made plans for more, finally comfortable in own skin. Happy.
Sold Mum’s house, bought my own.
Dad has cancer.
Same day job, now also a photographer.
Depression caught up with me.
Found new love.
Husband’s heart attack. Sheer terror. More time. More love. More of me back. Still black holes but can only keep going. Just want peace.
Country fields cows. Hard work. Cash millions. All change. New people. New place. London town. Excitement. Confusion. Still love him. More new. Crazy. Alive.
Temptation. Tried. Bodged. Just. About. Got. Away. New Beginnings. Happy, but Lido. Confusion. As you were. Happy ever after. Bought Billy Bragg ticket again.
same of the old, bits of the new, little time to borrow, rarely blue. wedding was amazing, rest was a blur. want to make big changes in the upcoming year.
Four weddings, married my love, friends married theirs, mavis scared us, failed move, mint tea, new job, road trip, over fear of flying, hopeful.
Missed my sister, gave up smoking, love and tears, became a matriach, all about vibration, hopeful when not worried - reaching for the better thought…
Hiding in France, then finally sharing our secret. Alice and Matilda two months early. Nappies, sick, milk, tired. Smiles, gurgling. We’re mum and dad.
Published a book in a week, raising £2k for charity. Interviewed 28 celebs, including all-time musical hero. Otherwise, a thankfully calmer, more even year.
Airplanes and new cities, radio jobbing, no sleeping. Heart stopped, heart swapped. Work switch, writing, writing, happy days. Big love. Big up. Big year.
Became student. Left lovely house, found grubby student digs. Is 28 too old to argue about toilet roll? First cat and true love compensate.
Book, photos, book, corrections, book, corrections, book, friends moved, book, website, book, in charge, book, press releases, book, finally, book, book!
Smiled more than last year, panic, disappointment, life changey decisions, chips and gravy on the beach, a big secret, changey just keeps coming, love.
Married 10 years, same day discover pregnant with twins. Shock, denial, acceptance and then pure joy. 2 beautiful girls. Unplanned arrivals = happier than ever.
Determination. Sleep. More sleep. Cheated. Something new, something better. Loud, bright, heat and laughter. Back to basics. Tough. Tired. Darknes, Fun. Bring on next year!
Seems like I’ve found “true loveâ€, engagement following sometime soon. Stopped being a student, finding employment seemed impossible until recently. Should’ve worked harder, really.
uncertain. searching. herbal stress remedy. exercise. breathing. tai chi. ecstatic yoga experience. Love is the law. blissful woodland frolics. true love. healthy.
Books and authors, hard work, multiple jobs, stress, therapy, love? no just sex, family, repairing relationships, severing others, what’s next?
living a lie, uncertainty, pornography, booze, empty relationships, grey hair, fading vision, peer pressure, others marraiges, dead pets, ticking clocks, liars, cheats, false starts, 2007 ends.
work work work play work fun work play work forest play rocking_out work garden flowers work work play prenatal work heartbreak work whales work
New job rules. Bought Gutted Renovated Home. Got Cat, Dog, Boyfriend Fight. Busy Stressed, but full of love and life. HAPPY. Growing. Winning.
Change. for better. for worse. Happy. Lonely. Driven yet confused. Hopeful. Tired. New Beginnings. Epiphanies galore. Great friends. Awesome Family. Kristy Kicks Ass. w00t!
First half sucked
second half great
Romance sucked
Job sucked
life looked bad
Went to Comic Con
New Job
New Love
future is bright
Metamorphosis. Rupture in the artery of matrimony. Searing depression, gave way. Thank you Mister Lilly. We weren’t looking. Then. Comforting joy. Together at last.
Jan forgotten. Feb forgotten. March forgotten. April forgotten. May forgotten. June forgotten. July forgotten. August forgotten. Sept forgotten. October best friend dead. Nothing Left.
Lots of weddings, babies, dating, baseball, opera, movies, dinners with friends. Leaving 2007/starting 2008 with a new love and 2 vacations! Can’t wait.
Fell in love all over again
With sweet wifey
Discovered imaginary friends
Willing to trade ideas
Better than boring telly
I like this!
kthxbai
Still the long commute, but get lots of reading in.
Following comedy around the country.
Periods of stress and worry.
Year ends with promotion.
Love won, finally, but too late. New love found, nearly thrown away, still wonderful, still great. Friends the best. Me? Trying to be better…
Inlaw, family, playing tourist. Moving AGAIN? No. Adjusting to close quarters. Mild summer, fall. More inlaws. Reading, reading, reading. Bub in “school.” 2008 calls.
Broken leg New Year’s day.
Marriage, love eternal.
Mom’s cancer scare.
Visit with Mom and Dad.
Daughter healing.
Perfect Yule and Christmas.
New beginnings.
School, still. Study, knit, parent, lather, rinse, repeat. Boy goes to school, Best Friend goes to Tokyo. Two damn cats. Sleep.
Went to Europe, found myself.
Ended a relationship to be free.
More moving.
Hired, fired, hired.
Grandpa died.
Back to school.
What a year.
Got promoted. Cat may have cancer. Personal breakthroughs come slowly; hate spinning my wheels.
2007 did not contain soulmate or good sex. Dare I re-up?
breakup, heartbreak, summer love, work, work, autumn in new york, best friend cancer, get back old life -old friends, wonderful tonight!
Give up. Transverse country for love. Love lost. Aborted move. Music found him. Love him. Leave job, find new, great job. Finally happy. Smiling.
new island. lots of cricket on lots of islands. break up. make up. more cricket. good times. hard work. looking forward to next year.
Pregnant. Little girl’s a teenager now. Baby’s a boy! Postpartum’d SAHM. So much love. Visited the fam. Learned to knit. He’s growing so fast!
what I expected? not quite. a year of change? perhaps. a year of growth? who knows?
life goes on. I regret nothing.
No license, no car. Moved out. Went to Germany. Lost friends, grew close to one. Biked all summer and fall. Got license, got car.
Wrote, musicked, and read a lot. Brain is presumably bigger.
Stayed with one girl entire year. Still happy.
Maintained dismal view of human nature.
Went to Hawaii. Started college. Discovered Karate. Wrote a lot. Going to Africa? Still unrequited love. Looking forward to next year. Hopeful? Yes. Definitely.
an accident that could have killed me.
graduation.
couldn’t love him but he loved me. still does.
went to college. maybe the wrong one.
Survived first year, summer rejuvenation. Fell for and lost, met good people, closer to family and friends. Social and academic balance. Optimistic as ever.
Two weekends in Green Bay, snorkeling, kayaking, luau in Hawaii, riding The Napa Wine Train with two best friends, being sick and getting well.
Took the train, spent two weeks in California. Saw whales, took many pics of the Golden Gate, got splashed with the ocean. Happy times.
delved deep, found silence. ate well. took up yoga. loved madly. quit smoking again. planes, trains, buses. visited india, pakistan. scaled mountains. antarctica again.
Finished school. No lease, no possessions, no people holding me back. Ready to move in ‘08. Or will I?
Watching late-night TV as we spoon on the sofa, laughing and kissing, coming and leaving, breaking up and making up, love, love, love, love, love.
Start new job. Ill, kidney failure, hospital, chemotherapy, hair falls out. He gets new job. Back to Southampton. Life (and hair) coming together again.
Terrible start, mentally ill child, docs say no hope for future. Different doc, new meds, calm and happiness once more. Life is great. Yippeeeeee!!!!!
Diet. Old friend fallout (relief!!!) Make ginourmous plans- (dance, yoga, writing, exercise) do zip Diet. New job. Stu and I find(ing our way. Diet.
settling back in, re-establishing roots. our cat came and curled up in our hearts. flew to families two years missed. finally, relievedly, deservedly british.
traveled some. broke up. moved to beloved guesthouse. helped others some. heart ached. painted. read. wrote. longed for something else. seeking often, found occassionally.
Almost done at the wrong college for the wrong degree. Much was stolen from me. Uncertain, unhappy, yet hopeful. Maybe 2008 will be better.
Learning to live in the back of beyond. Tweed jackets, feral cats, new gutters. Wilton’s Hall for Marc Almond’s return. France. Facebook. Very happy.
some still hold on. others slipped away. corn muffin. we’re still here. atop the mountain with the clouds rolling in; it’s all so beautiful.
A year of wonderous travel (Europe Asia) , profound loss (JPG miscarriage), good food, great friendship and a variety of film cameras.
Spent most of year working least I could. Took a chance. Happier for it even though now working more than I ever did before.
Finished school.
Lost something I never really had.
Moved to California.
Trying to figure out where I belong.
Am cautiously optimistic about new connections.
[photography(film)],[good, bad(days)],[nomadic future, embracing immaterialism], [still(geek, dork, student)], [love, hate, sleep, laugh], [depression{therapy(zoloft)}], [nueva york, chicago], allergies.
Pathetic, dismal beginnings.
Drama never ending, relationships disappointment.
Quit dead-end, financial status improved.
Found direction, back to school.
Encontró el amor mexicana!
C’mon 2008!
Happy. Depressed. Nervous Breakdown. Medication. Sister got married. Dealing with depression. Feeling somewhat better.
John starts home dialysis. Nephew born day after anniversary of Mum’s death. Infertility issues abound. Stopped speaking to stepfather. Work dramas. Depression strikes again.
Restarted:
churchgoing
singing (tenor)
therapy (effective!)
Got:
fluffy cat
into worse debt
sick of college
Stayed:
fat (and happy!)
perseverant
Realized:
yep, definitely gay
I went to Europe and realized I could open some doors, some open once a year, and others stay shut to the public forever.
finally ditched roommates. fabulous new pad. booming business. made ammends with mum. dad still clueless. brother imploding. best friends ever. i miss my ex.
Goodbye London. Hello Paris. Began an adventure. Started to write. A Kitten. Marriages. Beloved friends. Goodbye Granddad. Him. My heart. Beginnings again. Real. Giddy.
Could have finished my thesis, but didn’t. Got a proper job and thrived. Became a one-woman business. Decision: try to procreate in 2008.
Moved again – maybe for the last time? Degree nearly completed. Exhausted by family drama. Chose fat acceptance over bulimia. Learned that puppies sometimes suck.
Sad and blue, hard to remember happy. Scared and lonely, avoiding the hard choice. Hating myself for not living my life. Soulmate or Children?
Turned down a job, bought a house, discovered the wonder that is gardening, spent Christmas in Boston. Next year - who knows?
Came unhinged, got unhitched. Traded condo for studio apartment. Started therapy. Made music, wrote stories, got onstage. Tried to find myself, but still lost.
Got help, Let go, moved forward, created, found community, simplified life, walking lots, fell in love with my neighborhood, out of debt, happy, happy.
Bill. New York. The Girl in the Cafe. Cafe closure. Trains. Short film. Wrote feature. Love. Actually. Inspired. Job. Travel. Dreams. Realisations. Colaborations. London.
New friends. Finish school. Fantastic holiday. Start college. Manage to keep friends. Doctors. Diagnosis. Hopefully 2008 will be better.
Phew. Whirlwind friendship found too late. New life in the old town. Easier than anticipated farewell to old job. Immediate reality rediscovered. The end :)
Lost some weight, gained some muscle, living in a new place, seeing a hypnotherapist and a reiki healer, ended a relationship, am now alone.
Travel: Yosemite, Corvallis, Ashland, Big Sur, Portland, Toronto. Activity: no biking; dancing, hiking,. Many houseguests. Competent at work! Lunch group. Much fun. Still single.
Pregnancy, preparation, anticipation. Arrival of Alexander on March 17th. Learning to take care of baby, to be a mum, a parent. Such overwhelming love.
Moved from boyfriend’s house, now going broke living with progeny. Self sufficiency thwarted by health problems. Needing miracles, money, awesome friends. Worshipping digital photography.
Hated job, found better. Cut hair. Moved to Brooklyn. Summered. Quit smoking. Went to Catskills. Dog! Dog! Wrote, procrastinated, wrote. Liked myself this year.
started off co-hab, ended single and a little too wild. left florida for brooklyn. started grad school. got smarter and hotter. am happy, finally.
Got better with painting.
Left teaching; still not sure.
Jessie died.
Thailand adventure.
New puppy changes life.
Mum driving me nuts.
Thanks for Meeester.
Worked
Worked
Worked
Worked
Worked
Worked
Worked
Worked
Worked
Worked
Worked
Worked
Ate
shagged
Worked
Worked
Worked
Worked
Worked
Worked
Worked
Worked
Worked
Worked!
Bossy needs at least twenty-three words to sum up the first minute of last year but just for you she will try: Crap.
found love. finished school. worried. moved in with love. started something new. loved teaching. missed friends. loved friends. wonderful family vacation. excited for 2008.
Ma better. Ludlow birthday. Rufus London. I like it Olot. Bergerac. Two wet festivals. Wonderful Unthanks. Job bollocks. Amsterdam twice. Still mad in love.
finished school. started work. ditched bad boyfriend. took time out. friends left. missed them. made new friend. got good boyfriend. first shag. no license.
Planning, anticipation, wedding events, married love of my life, honeymoon, bela fleck. Brief depression, return to norm, life again good. Look toward next step.
Felt loved. Felt lucky.
Became older. Felt young.
Work dramas all over.
New promotion. New challenge.
Great family. Good friends.
Felt loved. Felt lucky.
Love. Searching. Live performances. New adventures. Improved health. Job hunting. Closure to relationship. Old friends stay, new friends go. Opened heart to new possibilities.
time so slow then. freindslove. stress. holidays blur. interailing - freedom, awe. university. new beginnings. irritation. levelling out. feel loved? want to get it right!
Death. Stress. Heartache. Yearning. Illness. Questioning. Anger. Love. Hate. Seeking. Music. Nature. Momma. Michael. Lee. Soldier. Sophia. Longing. Anxiety. Fatigue. Release. Hope. Learning. Prayer.
Laughing. Fun. Machu Picchu. Scuba: Octopus, Sharks, Rebirth, Shipwrecks, Lake Michigan, Underwater Pumpkin Carving. Sailing. Love. Heartbreak. Alive! Friends’ Changes: New Jobs, Divorces, Breakups, Support.
Too much cocaine, too little sleep. Twelve lovers. New friends: some made me cry. In love twice but it never took. Wrote a bit.
had the most beautiful baby girl. best year of my life so far. didn’t sleep much but didn’t care. i love her so much.
Laughed. Cried. Kissed. Left. Came Back. Made-up. Forgave. Prayed. Lost. Found. Grew. Happy. Sad. Mad. Joy. Kate. Dog. Wrong choice. Blog. Old Friend. Mark.
Weslyn. Hard work. Stress. Baltic cruise. True Colors. iPhone. 21st anniversary. Missed Rhonda. Missed Al. Happiness and tears. Jake. Philip. Hope. Love. No regrets.
Lived without an audience, loved across a distance
Watched planes take off without me
as I waited for my turn.
Essays. Documentary. Stress. Disappointment. Exams. Summer. Jobless. Housework. Knitting. Somerset. Caves. Third Year. Jobless. Reading. Lectures. Sewing. Cadfael. Stress. Holidays Fic. Parish Politics. Christmas. Essays. Stress.
Edinburgh. Rekindled old love, lost it. Roleplaying. Atlanta. Lodger gone. Secondment - delayed, going, delayed - repeat. Egypt, new friends. Begin secondment. New York. 2007 = good.
Discovered secret. Injured knee but returned to yoga. Became aunt and discovered desire to become mother. Passed. Made incredible friends. Consistently happy. Moving forward.
Realization
Circumstances
Moth, butterfly and dolphins
New friends
Pino Daniele
Choices, big secrets shared
Back to Brooklyn
Reconnected with friends
An insignificant “WTF?â€
Breathing
Amazing.
Completed Masters. Graduated. Party! Slept, read, relaxed, Cedar Hill. Got best job ever.Celebrated twenty years of kissing with Bob.Life is good.
Felt cold. No new job. Costal walks. New viewpoints. Colour. Learning to write. A place to write. Oil paint. Emotional teenage daughters. Relationship strain.
financial stress; new jobs, apartments, freinds; kitties’ love transcends, still breathing and greatfull, insights noted, losses tallied, lovers enjoyed, blessings counted, life is good!
Escaped that dark cloud
Confidence and laughter regained
Bravely juggled the impossible
Glimpsed who I wanted to be.
I think I am ready now.
Nobbled start.
Corporate fart.
Vanuatu fun hemi namabawan;
Hair Blong Dog, hockey, mighty Yasur,
Smolbag, kava, Dolphins endure.
Numbatri mates new,
Rest In Peace Stu.
Home. With him. Without him.
Beautiful friends. Leaving EVERYTHING.
Finding more. Smiling softly through golden dusty island afternoons.
Standing still/keeping moving. Freedom. Freedom.
Learnt that mayflies live well over a year, but die within a day of achieving adulthood, unable to eat. Resolved to live eternal childhood.
met him, fought her, loved him, dated bitch, dumped bitch, came out, made up with her, he broke my heart, coming to grips, friendship.
2007: year when Big Things happened.
New adventures.
Personal growth spurts.
Discovering new passions.
Re-aligning one’s future.
‘Twas the year that was FULLY LIVED.
New Boss • Spring Training • American River 50! • Drew’s UCI Graduation • 20th Almanor • New Mexico: Santa Fe, Bandelier, Taos • Flag Football • Columbia • Morgan’s Detour Ahead
Melancholy sprouted buds of hope once baked in desert goodness blossomed in homey places as a new year dawned and hope became faith.
Part-time freelancing, full-time life. Friends, family, creative, cultural. Turning forty. Questioning of identity. Growing confidence. Dreaming and scheming. Everything wide open. The unknown awaits.
gained. lost. gained again. lost again. no money. less sleep. missing. exploring. loving. hating. questioning. falling. new perspective. hurt. love. pain. pleasure. missing even more.
Overworked, underpaid, low morale. Snowboarded. Paris vacation kickstarts wanderlust. Lose cell, purse, passport, uncle. Dating drought. Quarterlife crisis. Start major life revisions. Breaking through.
No money. New job.
Big love, big heartbreak.
Fighting. Making up.
Fun & laughing. Became new me.
Desired, but still remained an unkissed virgin.
overworked, underfucked, helped friend (twins), comforted friend (breast cancer), felt needed for first time, fired, increased stress, hired, decreased stress, still searching for love.
Spending precious time with my Mum.
Watching my wonderful infant son.
Tolerating my partner in between great sex.
Chillin’ with my droogs.
Reflecting, writing.
A painful start.
A dream realized.
Am lucky: am in love. Deep in love.
A writer again.
Pleasure.
Post-coital regret.
Pre-coital regret.
Doritos.
I’m not cleaning that up.
Bad poetry.
Cigarettes.
Regret and cigarettes.
That molded quickly.
Regret.
Wine.
Seasonal Affective Disorder.
nihongo no, silent clocks
walks
flashchangeboom:
usa/home.
rootless kite
snagged by cities;
found my path.
lost then found
by old love.
(what fortune!)
Engaged. Broke up. Sadness. PS3. Happiness. LCD. More Happiness. Got a Stalker. Managed to hide. Got a girl. She’s just not right. It’s over.
Lost job, broke up, friend passed away, new room-mate, room-mate moved out, new job, new boy, anxiety attacks, nana passed away. Welcome new year.
Heartbroken by girl. Found meds and AA. Became brilliant, if only for a few months. Graduated. Hired. Found joy in drinking. Same girl heartbreak.
Sleep.Boy.Love.Sadness.Betrayal.Trust.Graduation.18.Loneliness.Disconnected. Morning.Movies.Music.Kisses.Promises.UCR. HimAddiction.Hugs.Pleasure.Pain.RAW.Emotion.Jealousy. Desire.
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