New Year, New Start
Happy New Year Ladies!!!As you might know if you've been following this blog for a while...I love fresh starts. And a new year is just the time to wipe the slate clean. For myself, I like to say good-bye to the things I didn't like so much from the year before, give thanks to the things I loved and start thinking about what I want to be intentional about in the year to come.
Jason and I have a tradition of thinking about some variation of these three areas on our own and then coming together to discuss it all sometime between Christmas and New Years. Some years, we have a lot that we want to focus on and other years, we keep our lists more small and manageable. (In fact, some years, I keep it super simple and cling to a mantra versus coming up with specific goals or intentionals.)Speaking of goals and intentionals - I think now a days, I'm more a fan of intentionals than goals. Nothing wrong with setting goals (I hear my dad's words..."if you fail to plan, you plan to fail") but lately, just focusing on being more intentional in certain areas has felt more manageable.I'd love for you to take some time this weekend to think through these three questions:1) What did I love about 2015? What am I thankful for? (And I know this could be difficult for some of you that experienced heart break like you never thought would be possible which is what brought you to this blog.)2) What am I SO glad to shut the door on from 2015? (...and this might be quite easy for most of you to pin point...)3) What do I want to focus on in 2016? In other words, as I look back at what I loved and what I didn't love so much, what areas need my intentional focus?Here is a small glimpse as to how I answered these questions:1) One of the things I'm most thankful for as I look back at 2015 is my family's mental and physical health. 2014 was a terribly rough year. I was dealing with some serious depression and once I started to level out with the help of therapy and medication, Jason started to plummet. It was Hard.We also dealt with a lot of sickness in 2014. For example, baby Norman, just 6 months old at the time, came down with Type II Influenza. Scary. Sweet Harrison, who was 3 at the time, broke his ulna (it's one of the long forearm bones). And I think Truman had strep throat at least three times. And that's not everything.But 2015, well, we fared much better. And I am grateful to God!2) I didn't do a great job in 2015 of managing bedtime routines at our house. In particular, my own. By the end of the year, I was literally rolling out of bed with no more than 20 minutes to spare before walking Tru to school. This resulted in anxious mornings and me feeling less than grounded half the time. Jason gave me a brilliant idea - go to bed earlier and wake up earlier! (And I've kinda started that this week. I say kinda because now I'm rolling out about 30 minutes before I walk Tru to school. It's making a big difference people. Brilliant.)3) So the intentional I want to share with you guys is something that in just the last year or two I've become privy to. I thought it was reserved only for sex addicts, but it seems it can tighten its grip on others, too. It's Shame with a capital S. In 2016, I want to work through at least some of my shame. I'm well aware of what it feels like when I feel ashamed. And I don't know what to do with it. I think it will start with educating myself and just like I did last year with working through insecurity, I will keep you posted on what I learn right here on the blog.So now it's your turn. Think through these three areas and write out what you'd like to do differently this year. I heard recently that if you write out your intentionals, you are 40% more likely to gain ground and move toward your goal. (And no, I don't have an article to reference to back me up but I really did hear this recently.)Wishing each of you a blessed 2016. Thanks for sharing your hearts with me here. You make this place richer and inspire me to keep it real and work toward whole healing.Love,Shelley