We are at the end of 2017, it gives many of us time to reflect on what has been this past year, and plan for what will be for the next year. Our deepest hopes and desires can often be what we think about, though sometimes just some simple changes are what we plan to make. In days gone by, I would often plan to lose weight, having been a big girl all of my adult life. I propose to continue to eat as healthily as I can, with the focus being on balance. I would often plan to treat people as I would like to be treated, you all know, that old golden rule most of us were taught growing up. I know that many resolutions I made never made it past the first week of a new year, that is the case for so many of us. As I have gotten older, though not as much wiser as I might have once thought my silver years would bring, I realize that treating each day as the most important one ever is what is needed. Yesterdays errors can be erased to some degree most times, and we can commit to not letting them occur again. Planning too much in the future can boggle our brains and weight us down with burdens we need not create in the first place. My focus will be to make each day the best one it can be, and to not punish myself when I fall short of any of my daily goals, but rather forgive myself, analyze the situation and move forward. Getting bogged down in past mistakes and missed opportunities is a waste of precious and valuable time. Caveat here, what works for me might not work for you, and vice verse. I have a couple of acquaintances that craft their own blogs, and their purpose is different, far different than mine is. We are different folks, therefore we have different aspirations, goals and life purpose. I need to keep that in mind when I read said blogs, often they are self involved and make me wonder why the person needs to commit to the written word such meanderings. Then I recall, we are ALL different, and we have needs and habits that vary from person to person. One thing I need to practice in a stronger way is accepting people as they are, and making no judgment upon them or their life. I have always classified myself as a giver, and that has often led to my not doing the best for ME that I can. Givers tend to listen more, and not get their own needs met. One of my intrinsic needs is to feel I am assisting someone in some way, no matter how small. Financially, that is not something I have the resources to accomplish if they need to have that kind of assistance. I have other attributes that are as valuable, if not more so, that monetary ones. Giving of time is one of the things so many of us are guilty of being selfish with. Another part of my focus will be to continue to look at what people do right and do my best with avoidance with an obsession of what they do that is wrong, and especially wrong in my eyes. I do not live their life and they do not live mine, I have no right to judge them as they have none to judge me. I also need to continue to bite my tongue when I do not have something positive or good to contribute. Positive statements, actions and deeds make the world a better place, and it begins with me, even if only in a small way. I choose to make each day a beginning, much like a blank sheet of paper with crisp lines and no erasures. A blank canvas to create something all together unique and make a difference even in only a small way. Global change begins with local action and we each can make an important contribution to making change. Tomorrow is not here yet, I choose to concentrate on this moment, this day and keep life as good as it can possibly be.
