2014 Vision

Welcome to 2014!  It’s hard to believe that we are already at the end of the first month.  So, how many of you have already given up on your New Year’s resolutions? LOL.  No worries.  Nobody’s judging you.  Most people are done with them within the first 30 days.  That’s why I choose not to make New Year’s resolutions.  Instead, I decide on things I want to try or things I want to do and set small goals for myself.  I also do a vision board; so I can see my vision for the year clearly.  So, what’s in store for 2014?

Overall, what I want for 2014 is true, genuine happiness.  In order to get that, though, I must create balance in my life.  I need to balance my mind, body, and spirit to make happiness become real for me.

To work on my mind, I stay in therapy and I read books.  I like going to therapy because it helps me clear my head, bounce things off another person, and learn things about myself.  If I didn’t have my therapist, Carla, I think I might just implode because I would have nowhere to put my “stuff.”  Just like my clients, I have “stuff” to deal with too.  For example, I get anxiety every time my editor talks about my speaking tour for my book.  I’ve luckily been able to process that in therapy to figure out what is really going there and how to deal with it.

To work on my body, I have added healthy living to my vision for 2014.  Now let me explain my definition of healthy living. My definition of healthy living includes healthy eating and exercise.  In my definition of healthy eating, you don’t have to give up anything unless you want to; but you must learn to eat the bad stuff in moderation.  So, I will still have my M&M’s; I just won’t eat the whole pack.  I still allow myself a beer; but it’s light beer and it’s only one.  Pizza is on thin crust, etc, etc.  You know, things like that.  In my definition of exercise, something is better than nothing.  That’s my only goal: to do something each day.  Whether I play a game on the Wii, do Zumba, or walk the stairs instead of using the elevator, I must do something physical every day to get my heart going.  Now, is that going to make me skinny overnight? No way!  It will, however, make me healthier; and I will build up to be able to do more as I get stronger and stronger.  The bottom line is: there is no beating up on myself allowed.  I can eat what I want in moderation.  I can move my fat butt or not – my choice – but I have to suffer the consequences if I don’t.  I am tired of suffering the consequences of being unhealthy and physically unfit: feeling tired all the time, short of breath coming up the stairs, not fitting in my clothes, but most of all, not feeling good about myself and how I look and feel. 

To work on my spirit, I am trying, for the third year, to read the entire Bible in one year.  So far, I have kept up with the daily readings.  More importantly, I am enjoying my daily readings and getting to know the Word of God again.  This is an important goal for me because my spirit really needs to be fed this year.  I took some hard hits in 2013 and was skating on thin ice.  So, I need to reinforce my foundation of faith as I face this New Year.

Getting my life balanced will balance me and with balance comes happiness.  What is happiness, you ask?  What does it look like?  What does it feel like?  Well, it’s subjective.  Your happiness is how you define it for yourself.  My happiness is a hot pink heart shape.  It smells like fresh baked chocolate chip cookies.  It tastes like good champagne with dark chocolate.  It sounds like a romantic whisper in my ear.  I can feel it, warm, in my chest.  It feels like a soft fuzzy blanket on my skin.  I see happiness every day in roses, puppies, babies, ocean waves, sunsets, at the beach, and in nature in general.  That’s what my happiness is to me.  It’s a tangible and reachable goal.  What’s your happiness?  Where can you find it?  How do you get it?  Then, once you get it, how do you keep it?

What is your vision for 2014?