Another year is ending. As time passes, I cling more to each minute. Every second is filled with wonder and this year there is no exception. These are some of my favorites of this past year. This exercise always fills me with such gratitude. To savor and pay homage to the light in my life. A short capsule of the gems I relished this past year:

Favorite Reads: Every year I always want to read more. And this year was no exception. There were books that stayed with me even weeks after I finished the last page. Here are some of my favorites: The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe, The Bite of the Mango by Mariatu Kamara, Daring Greatly by Brene Brown, and The Snows of Kilimanjaro by Ernest Hemingway.

Favorite Blog Posts: These two posts, Silence and Unsafe,  stood out to me the most. Silence revolved around my father’s friendship and the fact that they didn’t need to share words in order to harness their bond. Unsafe was about my foray into yoga and how the results of my latest session yielded unexpected results.

Favorite Poem: My favorite new find in poetry moved me to tears. Please read this. It speaks to me in so many different ways that I can’t really explain. Kindness by Naomi Shihab Nye.

Favorite Trips: We took many small trips this year. My two favorites: a beach vacation at the Hotel Del Coronado with my family on Coronado Island and a girls trip to Palm Springs with some of my favorite gal pals from Arizona.

Favorite Concert: I am avid concert goer. I don’t write about it much here, but I love throwing myself into music. This year was an exceptional season of some great concerts, like Alanis Morrisette, Coldplay, Madonna, Kelly Clarkson, The Fray, and Yo-Yo Ma. My absolute favorite concert was watching Coldplay. Chris Martin loves his art form. And it shows everytime he plays the guitar, sings, and moves to the music.

Favorite Movie: Lincoln. I will say it again. Lincoln. Daniel Day Lewis is spectacular to watch in this film. You really feel the texture of Lincoln’s anguish and the ebb and flow of  the history involved.

Favorite Documentary: Wisdom. This is a documentary that details 50 people and what they believe about wisdom in love, work, and life.

Favorite Words: “To live in this world, you must be able to do three things: to love what is mortal, to hold it against your bones knowing your life depends on it, and when the time comes to let it go, to let it go.” Mary Oliver

Favorite Picture: This picture has many layers. Some you can see and some only the person in the picture realizes. I like this particular portrait because it was taken at my sister’s wedding by my brother-in-law, Ankur. The smiles, I feel, are captured in the most perfect way.

I leave you with my favorite Dr. Seuss quote, “Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened.”

What are some of your favorite things of 2012? Would  love to hear from you.