This time of year often sees an influx of those standard ‘new year, new me’ posts.
Resolutions and brand new promises are on the cards for many.
Not for me, thank you very much.
If you are one who makes new year resolutions and actually adheres to them, I applaud you.
When I was smaller, I would write out my new year resolutions – so diligently and neatly, often in a pink and sparkly journal.
Most times, that journal would sit in my draw the entire year, never to be looked at again until it came time to rewrite new resolutions for the next year.
Resolutions then seemed so much more attainable, and the concept was easier to buy into as a child.
Things like “do more exercise” or “start a new hobby” were easy enough and came with the satisfaction of ticking them off the list.
As of recent times, resolutions at this age seem almost intimidating.
In comparison, “eat more fruit” seems a lot more doable than “buy a house”.
Anyway, being the second chancer that I am, I gave journaling and new year resolutions another go (for the past two years).
Needless to say, the first go resulted in that journal sitting in my draw – never to be looked at again until the end of last year.
At that point I was frustrated with myself, for failing to see things through.
So around November last year I began evaluating, re-evaluating, planning (and I mean really planning) my life for the next 12 months.
I suppose I felt good about myself and where my life was heading – I could see it all perfectly planned out on paper and I was excited to get started.
A bit of travel was in the pipeline, my passport was sorted, visa was on the way and I began making accommodation arrangements.
As the universe would have it – of course the one time that I finally got my life together was the exact time that a global pandemic broke out.
A spanner in the works? Definitely.
Did I throw a fit over it? No.
If anything, it helped me look at the bigger picture – one can never be fully prepared for the curveballs life sometimes throws at us.
As they say, expect the unexpected.
Nobody could have foreseen this year unfolding the way that it did.
If you’ve also had plans or expectations that fell through this year, don’t let it discourage you.
You may have found that other people have been flourishing regardless of the circumstances, be happy for them and move on with your life.
Everybody has different circumstances so you can’t compare your life’s progress to someone else’s – we are each running our own race.
Moving forward, I’ve decided to take one day at a time.
While there is always room for self-improvement, I’m trying to not let it dictate my entire life.
The pursuit of perfection and having things perfectly planned out sometimes distract us from actually living in the moment, and enjoying our lives for what they are.
Clearly planning my life too far in advance is not for me – don’t get me wrong though, I do have long-term goals and little things I’d like to work towards.
I just think it’s best for me not to bombard myself with an entire list of things I feel I must achieve within 12 months.
So if someone were to ask me “What are you changing about yourself for the new year?” my answer would be “nothing”.
I don’t think I could buy into the idea of a calendar change reversing my 22 years of (seemingly) bad habits.
Long story short, celebrate your small victories and don’t let life pass you by, seriously.
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