I’ve decided to create a New Year’s post in two segments. Part one will be looking back and reflecting on 2019, while Part two will be looking ahead to all that lies ahead in 2020.
Every year, my friends and I get together and create vision boards for the upcoming year. It’s become a tradition I really look forward to. It helps us to clear our minds and set our intentions for the year ahead. I love that with each new year comes so many new opportunities for growth. I love thinking about what the future holds, and what I could set out to accomplish over the next twelve months.
I’ve given a lot of thought to 2020 and what I want to see come out of the next year, and I have settled on the word, “spirituality.” The last few years I’ve focused on wellness, health, cultivating a healthier lifestyle, travel, etc. But this year I want to really focus on my mind and my spirit, which is why “mind and spirit” will be my mantra moving into the new year. I want to read more, spend more time in meditation and prayer, and really hone in on my faith and spirituality. I want to work on my soul for a change.
This also means I want to carve out more time for my hobbies – for things that will rejuvenate my spirit and get me in the right mindset. These things include writing, photography, painting, hand-lettering, and running. I am hopeful that by focusing more on my hobbies, I will spend less time meandering around social media and scrolling through feeds, which don’t really do anything for my spirit and can honestly bring more negative energy than positive. I foresee this being my biggest challenge – in large part because I know I will be incredibly busy the next few months with debate tournaments, teaching three different preps, travel, and just life in general. When I get that busy, any free time I have I tend to just sit and stare – whether it’s at my phone or my TV or just lost in space. I just get so tired that it’s hard to focus my mind on much of anything other than Friends reruns or my Instagram feed. But I am going to make a solid effort to focus less on the mundane and more on things that I know enrich my life and bring me joy.
I’m not sure why, but I feel more excited and at the same time nervous about my 2020 goals than I have in a long time. I think because what I’m asking of myself is going to challenge me in new ways. I am going to be stretching myself and forcing myself to envision a life that may not be that drastically different than the one I’m living now, but will force me out of my comfort zone. Because in cultivating these hobbies, I will be sharing them with the world. That can be scary, vulnerable. People can be very critical, negative, downright cruel. But people can also be kind, supportive, nurturing and loving. I will surround myself with those who want to lift me up, not tear me down for trying something new. And at the end of the day, I am not doing these things for them. I am sharing my hobbies because I enjoy them, because maybe someone else will find joy from what I create. That risk outweighs any negativity that may come my way.
So here’s to 2020; to new beginnings, fresh starts. Here’s to cultivating a life that brings me joy and that broadens my spirit and my mind. Here’s to all that may come from these new intentions.
May you find inspiration in a new year, and set intentions that will bring you joy in the coming year.
Happy New Year, friends!
