Dear 2016 Me,
I see you over there working out and eating healthy. Look at you go! You run every day, you go out to weekly dinners with friends, and you’re even in a trivia group! This weekend you plan to get all dolled up and go on your Friday night date night with the hubby! You’re not stressed at work anymore and both your two-year-old and your newborn never cry, they just come home, eat their food, play nicely, smile, and then go to sleep. It’s a good thing the both of them sleep through the night since you get up at 4:30 in the morning to go for your daily run. Good thing you made all those resolutions for the New Year.
Sincerely,
Wishful Thinking 2015 Me
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I know it sounds off-the-wall ridiculous, but isn’t that kind of what we do to ourselves every year around this time? We make these resolutions on how we can be better versions of ourselves and we are so confident that we will make them happen when in reality, it maybe only last a few days, weeks, or – if you’re very determined- months into the new year.
In a society that has a ‘go big or go home’ mentality, it tends to set up everyone for disappointment.
Is it so unacceptable that we start small and hope that it is the right step toward something more?
Or maybe, we just have to change our mindsets to be happy with small changes. Instead of promising that this year I will be a marathon runner, maybe I just tell myself that I should try and be more active, go for a walk with the kids, and maybe work my way up to a nice jog.
I almost wish instead of making new year’s resolutions, we reflected on the previous year and really appreciated each of our blessings.
We are always so tuned into finding the new and better things in life that we pass by opportunities to really be happy with what we have and the kind of people we are.
Recently, I have come to truly appreciate how precious life can be. Your loved ones can be there one day and not the next. It’s important to cherish every day we have with each other, and what better time to show that than during the new year.
So, this year, my new year’s resolution is to just find the beauty in each day, even if only for one minute.
I know there will be many, many days ahead full of stress, yelling, crying, and more. But, it is my promise to myself for the next year, and for years to come, to find accomplishment in the small things.
Yes, I will have a two-year-old and an infant in 2016, yes there will be days where I will want to pull my hair out. But it is my job to be happy that I have those children, that I have a job to stress about, that I am healthy enough to go for a walk or run when I feel like it, and that I have a husband and family that will love me, no matter what.
My new year’s resolution is to be happy with what I have.
