Rear View Mirror-2014

I simultaneously love and hate this time of year.  I'm not a big fan of Christmas, too much commercialism, forced gaiety and sugar-or to use a phrase from my Grandma Gerry, it's a big "to do."

I do love New Years.  It's like a brand new notebook full of creamy empty pages or cracking the spine of a book for the first time.  It's the freshly fallen snow without a footfall breaking the surface, it's all possibility and hope.  I've always tried to take some time to look back at the successes and the learning opportunities from the year.  For 2014 it was about some job stability, some new focuses for the future and fitness. With fitness I did great until July and was sidelined. I ran several 5k's, finished the Lincoln 1/2 marathon and trained for RAGBRAI.  I learned I love cycling and there is nothing better than racing down a hill.  Sidelined with DVT and a Pulmonary Embolism my workout mojo withered on the vine.

I'm disappointed that it took so many months to start to find it again and the old me-the one I broke up with earlier this year-would look at that as a failure.  But I have a new perspective on this journey. I didn't give up, I knew what I lost and thanks to friends and a professional, I am moving forward again with a new fun fitness activity, but that's a different blog post.

In 2014 I embraced being a lifelong learner, this opens so many opportunities.  January will bring me more fitness classes, the 2nd semester getting Master's degree #2, knitting class and a class on Julia Cameron's The Artists Way.  I love looking forward, and I will continue to reframe my life and my intentions.  I'm still working on my intention statement for 2015 but it's starting as: Finish what I started with Monique on 12/29/14.

Monique and I are going down this road together to figure out the path for 2015.  Her intention statement is AWESOME!  Monique will be off High Blood Pressure medicine by 12/31/15.  To get there we have signed a contract for our plan for the year.  This includes monthly goal contracts, weekly goals and leaning on each other as we try and find a new path.

For example, my goal for this past week was: No soda and no processed foods.  I defined processed foods as any packaged food where I don't know what the ingredients are.  Start small seems to be the way we are going to be successful.

I'm excited about this blank page in this new book.  Please be gentle with yourself as you look at the possibilities for 2015.  If you need a reminder to be kind, I'm here for you!

Cheers!