Hey everyone, my birthday was Monday and I thought it would be a good time to write about how much the world has changed in sixteen years as well as things I’ve become more aware of and experienced. Over a period of sixteen years you can’t expect the world NOT to change, but different events have happened in my life time as compared to someone a hundred years ago. Needless to say, the world on Tuesday July 26th 2005 is not the same as it is today, so let’s get to it. (The pictures below are the changes in my own self over sixteen years.)

On the note of becoming more aware of things, my knowledge about world issues has certainly grown. I’ve learned about just how unfair this world can be and how privileged and fortunate I am to live the life I do. The media has brought attention to a scary amount of racism in the world, especially in the past two years. I’ve come to know more about things that happened in the country I live in, and news about Indian Residential schools has changed the way a lot of people think about Canada. Those are some of the more significant things that I’ve actually taken into account as I’m getting older.

There have also been a number of changes in the environment, including substantial disasters like wildfires, hurricanes, and earthquakes, that effect the lives of thousands. There are also things humans do to the environment that have been brought to my attention, such as abundances of plastic waste and unethical releases of greenhouse gasses. The world has come a long way in reducing waste and being more eco friendly, but there’s still a long way to go.

On a lighter not, we’ve also come a long way in how we operate everyday. Crazy technological advances have taken place from Apple’s first iPhone release, to electric and self driving cars. I remember being fascinated when my parents came home with the second generation iPad. If only I knew what we would have ten years later. Nowadays tech is seen almost everywhere in the workplace, and our daily lives. The world of music has also changed dramatically. Shake it Off by Mariah Carey came out sixteen years ago, and Baby by Justin Bieber was released eleven years ago. Boomerang by Jojo Siwa is already five years old (iconic song, I know). Today, Billboard’s Hit 100 has Butter by BTS at the top, with Good 4 U by Olivia Rodrigo right behind it.

It’s safe to say the world has changed majorly in sixteen years, and I’d be crazy to say it won’t be extremely different in sixteen more years. The world has changed and so have I, and I’m excited to be able to look back on this in a few years and compare what’s new. Happy birthday to me and thanks for reading!