hope floats

"To everything there is a season

and a time to every purpose

under the heaven"

I like the new year and all the opportunities it seems to hold. I think it's healthy to say goodbye to the old year, and welcome in the fresh new year with all it's possibilities. Endless prospects, so much hope, the sky's the limit. It's the thought of "new year's resolutions" I struggle with. 

Every year, starting in December, I brace myself for the onslaught of articles, reports, interviews, church talks and blog topics from people and friends who see the new year as a time for self-improvement. Now don't get me wrong, I'm all for self-improvement. And these people are sincere. But I think that so many times over the years, I have not had the strength, or motivation, or whatever it took, for my personal resolutions to come to fruition. So the thought of making more every year, only to experience more failure, is very stressful. It takes some of the hope right out of that brand new year ahead. 

But a pessimist, I am not. I have just had to learn that everyone has their own way of doing things. I will admit, it has been somewhat overwhelming for me to visit blogs and read the long lists of amazing goals my friends and acquaintances are up for at the starting gate of this year. Oh, to have such energy! But I am excited to see them reach their goals, and I will be their biggest cheerleader! As for me, I had to do some very deep thinking. And I had to be very honest with myself. I needed to assess where my family members were in the paths of their lives. And I needed to say some sincere prayers to figure everything out. Like, on my knees. And go from there.

I think everyone can relate to needing motivation. There needs to be some sort of motivation involved in order to accomplish something. For example, I have my favorite passages and verses of scripture, like most people. But as far as reading and studying the scriptures daily, that has always been hard for me. Yet I feel it's very important. When I had been able to do it in spurts, my day always went better - but even so, it was still hard for me to be consistent. After years of trial and error, I decided I needed to make a rule for myself. I was an adult, after all, and no one was going to make the rule for me. I knew what worked, I knew what didn't, and if I was honest enough with myself, I could make this work.

For a few years now, every morning after I get the kids off to school, there are a lot of things I need to do around the house. For example: pick up the house, start laundry, unload the dishwasher, etc. There are other things I need to do to get my day rolling - for example: get ready, eat breakfast, look over my "to do" list, etc. And still more things waiting that I am anxious to delve into - for example: work on a craft project, create a blog post, shop for a birthday gift. Well here is my rule: NONE of this can start - NONE of it - until I have read my scriptures and said my prayers. Quick translation: if I want to read my favorite blogs, I have to read my scriptures.  

I guess you could call it a resolution. Perhaps you could call it a goal. For me, it had to be a rule. And there's some sort of motivation involved. There's a by-product involved as well, which is now that my scriptures are being read every day, my day goes much, much better. And more than just learning the scriptures... I feel like I am being blessed for doing something worthwhile. The by-product my friends, is the biggest gift of all.

So back to my hopes for this year. And I do have hopes for this new year of course. They are based on what is most important right now, and much motivation lies behind each one. 

• pray for inspiration and guidance as a mother, on behalf of my children. All 3 boys are in different important stages of their lives right now - each one a unique and critical stage.
• take my health more seriously - age and bad habits have done a lot of damage
• continue creative learning - particularly photography - in order to expand my Etsy store and blog
• let some sad and angry feelings GO
• start recording music again - something I wanted to do last year but never did 

ok - now I can go check Facebook