It's a beautiful day. I would like to have many beautiful days this year. I know this is possible because I had many beautiful days last year.
I was able to travel a bit and see friends and family.
I was able to realize that spending time with my family in the here and now is not the fractious irritation it was when I was a child.
I learned that living life as it is now is much better than living life through what happened in the past.
I learned that anticipating things to turn out negatively is a waste of time, because most of the time, they turn out right. And when they don't, it isn't the end of the world.
I learned that drama is boring, but passion isn't. Passion makes life interesting and exciting. Drama leaves me agitated and stuck. Passion moves me forward.
I learned that getting things to happen immediately is fun but fulfillment of a goal that I've worked a long time getting to is rewarding on levels that I haven't even become aware of yet.
I learned there's many people out there in the ether writing the most amazing stuff and posting it on their blogs where I can read it for free. I have read many things that helped me get from January 1, 2009 to January 1, 2010, in a far better mind-set than I've ever had. Things made me stop and think; things that I read that clarified what I was working on at that moment in time. It's all a step forward on the path.
I learned that sitting around on my ass may be fun (what is 'fun', anyway?) but getting up and moving around makes me feel better.
I learned that helping someone else is one of the best things I can do for myself, whether it's lending an ear to someone's problems or giving money to a worthy cause. My worthy causes this year were www.donorschoose.org and www.kiva.org. Both are places where the money I donate goes directly to the recipient, not to some anonymous organization.
I have learned a great deal of patience this year. My mother had a diagnosis of moderate dementia, she has terrible short-term memory issues. Visiting her as I do every three months or so (she lives 500 miles away) is a crash course on patience, as she asks the same question over and over again every few minutes. She can't remember what I said and this is not her fault. Patience is not my strongest attribute and by the third day of our visit, I'm always starting to crack. But I'm learning.
I learned that I have some really great friends and some really great family, some I see almost every day and some I only get to talk to on the phone or via email. But they are all great people and I am fortunate to have them in my life. My life would be much emptier without them.
I think my biggest lesson this year is that nothing about my life is all that complicated, unless I make it that way. Do I want to eat better? Yes and it just as easy to eat food that is actually tasty (and may have the added attraction of being good for me) as it is to eat junk food. Do I want to exercise more? Yes, and all I have to do is stand and walk. Couldn't be simpler. Do I want to be actively involved in my own life? Yes, I do and all I have to do is disconnect from the electronic distractions. Turning off the TV, if there isn't something specific I want to see; turning off the computer instead of spending hours on the internet looking for something interesting and not doing something interesting.
Life isn't complicated, I make it that way. In 2009, I started to realize that gradually throughout the year. In 2010, I hope that I am able to remember the lessons I learned and continue to add to them. I would like to have many beautiful days this year.
