New beginnings

[Image credit: Sujin]

“ … the old has gone, the new has come!”
~ The Bible (NIV 1984)

Old habits die hard.  But as the quote states, the old has passed.  Finished.  Completed.  2012 has left the building.  Of course, that doesn’t mean we forget all the bumps and detours along our journey toward Someday.  It just means it’s time for a new beginning.  I love the feeling of a blank page.  It can be scary to some, but to others it’s a chance for redemption.  An opportunity for improvement, deliverance, recovery.  As one wise Yogi stated: Never too old, never too bad, never too late, never too sick to start from scratch once again (Bikram Choudhury).  If it’s not January 1st, it can be January 2nd or March 3rd.  As long as we have breath, each day is a new beginning.  Fill each page from top to bottom.  Go ahead, start now.  Don’t waste any of that white space.  And Happy New Year!

What’s a new beginning in your life?

The first day of the rest of your life (story)

[Image credit: Ohmega1982]

One day your life will flash before your eyes.
Make sure it’s worth watching. ~ Unknown

So how did the year go?  Can you look back on the last 366* days and pat yourself on the back for a job well done?  Or did your enthusiasm start with a bang and end with a fizzle?  My year was filled with starts and stops and ups and downs.  Many of my goals were accomplished, even ones that were not a glimmer on January 1st.  Now tomorrow is another New Year — a chance for a clean slate and for us to continue writing our life story.  The cool part is that a story writes itself and, as it plays out, the ending is always being revised.  May your story play out exactly as you dream, with delightful surprises woven throughout each chapter.  And when you reach the final page, I hope you’ll be truly satisfied with how it turned out.

What are your plans to celebrate the advent of 2013?

*Leap Year (thanks for pointing that out, Big Sister!)

From the bottom of my heart

[Image credit: arztsamui]

As of tomorrow, I’ve fulfilled one of my two dozen goals for 2012.  Although it may be the end of my daily blogs, it is not the end of my rambling and rhetoric.  Plans for 2013  include randomly checking in and sharing a piece of wisdom, posting updates on how my other writing ventures are going and my ever-present quest for Someday.  Maybe I’ll note a quote that touched my writer’s soul or step on my soapbox to air a grievance.  Rest assured (to the chagrin of many), I’m not likely to run out of things to say anytime soon.  So if you’ve been a follower, thank you from the bottom of my heart.  And I hope you’ll stick with me as I enter yet another new season where I put fingers to keyboard and tackle a dream.  In the meantime, go after what you want with everything you’ve got.  It’s always the *write* time.

If you could devote yourself to fulfilling one dream, what would it be?

Preparing for a fabulous new year

[Image credit: chanpipat]

You may currently have all your resolutions, goals and “to dos” put in place for the New Year.  However, those lists may just as well be words on paper — rather than an action plan toward fulfilling dreams or simply navigating life’s choppy waters — if you don’t prepare yourself mentally.  It’s your mind that will either talk you out of it, or keep you on track.  Here are five tips to help you plan for a happy, successful and (hopefully) life-changing 2013:

1. Begin each day with expectation that something wonderful is going to happen.
2. Plan and prioritize.  If it moves you closer to your highest purpose in life, do it first.
3. Let go of your results.  Remember, control the things you can.
4. Turn off background TV or other distractions that pull your mind off track.  Focus on the job at hand.
5. End each day with gratitude.  Write down at least one wonderful thing that happened.

How are you preparing for a fabulous New Year?

Empty nests are for the birds

[Image credit: jannoon028]

As I discussed in my recent post, A new year for change…, I’m expecting 2013 to sport its share of change.  However, I’m already dealing with the first painful one even before the ball drops in Times Square.  My daughter is moving out, and Mom’s not ready.  Who am I going to blame for not scraping off the pizza stone or for forgetting to fill the toilet paper holder in the guest bath?  How will I manage when I don’t know if she’s safely tucked under her comforter at night?  I feel like I’m losing my Jacuzzi partner, my Tuesday night Parenthood date, my mini me.  I know it happens and I know it’s supposed to happen.  But I was just starting to get good at this parenting thing.  And the kicker?  She’s moving out this weekend while I’m traveling.  The other night when she was so loud while I was trying to write?  Yeah, not such a big deal.

Any tips you can give to this empty nester?

A new year for change … and butterflies

Not to sound like a Debbie Downer, but wow, talk about feeling lower than low.  Ever take one of those good long looks in the mirror and you didn’t like what you saw?  What about when you see yourself through someone else’s eyes?  For me, the answer is change.  And change is hard.  But I suppose if it didn’t hurt sometimes, the results might go under-appreciated.  While 2012 was a year to stretch beyond my comfort zone, 2013 looks like it’s going to be a year of some painful changes.  One change, although without discomfort, is that I’m doing away with my daily blogs.  I’ll check in from time to time, ramble here and there, spout off rhetoric, but for the most part I’m going to work on changing.  Another word for change is transform.  It’s what the caterpillar does when it breaks free from its cocoon.  That’s me.  And I’ll emerge not unscathed, but I will be a beautiful butterfly.

What does 2013 look like for you?

B is for blog

[Image credit: Theeradech Sanin]

The first step in blogging is not writing them but reading them. ~ Jeff Jarvis

My big sister emailed me last week and mentioned I had already written 161 blog posts.  One of my goals for the New Year was to post each day, and although a few haven’t cleared until after midnight in some parts of the world, I’ve faithfully stuck to my resolution.  With a half-year left and around 200 more to go, I’m already thinking about 2013.  At this point, I don’t know that I’ll commit to another blog-a-day, but rather focus on my other writing endeavors, while checking in occasionally and following fellow bloggers.  Blogging daily has been a great way to discipline myself, however.  Although no one else keeps track (except maybe my sister), I like the regular deadline and feeling of accountability.  It also forces me to be more observant, dig deep into my well of ideas and step outside my comfort zone.  Plus, it helps me work things out in print.  For now I’ll keep doing what I’m doing, and in 200 odd days, maybe I won’t just be a little bit older, I’ll be a little bit wiser.

Is there a goal you made for 2012 that you’ve kept up with?