New Year, New Hopes.
And just like that, it’s January.
With every new year, comes a sense of new beginnings. If we’re lucky, it may even come with a feeling of hope. A hope for change, a hope for new opportunities. Some hope for love or a stronger body. While others are hopeful the good habits they’ve just begun will stick.
I’d be lying if I said the last few years weren’t hard. Painfully so. I think that’s the case for a lot of people. Perhaps that’s the case for you.
I hear that.
I’m realizing that some seasons of life are like that. Hard, full of setbacks. You creep up your mountain, whatever your mountain is, with steadfast resolve. Only to slip, to stumble past the point you started at. And that’s frustrating. People are quick to say “it’s not about the destination, it’s the journey!” and “if you fall down 7 times, get up 8.”
That advice, no matter how accurate and well intentioned, can sometimes fail to resonate when all you can see in front of you are obstacles. When all you really want to see is that light at the end of a dark tunnel.
But seasons change. Circumstances, perspectives and even luck change, too. All this to say that if 2022 wasn’t your year, and if 2021 wasn’t your year, and if 2020 wasn’t your - hell that was nobody’s year - maybe 2023 will be your year for positive change.
A recap of this past year…
I’ve spent more time this past year being still, going slow and reflecting on what’s important. In 2022, I wrote zero blog posts for this site. Nada. But that’s okay. I did publish something, a children’s book, and it felt amazing to cross it off my bucket list. Life is full of give and take, full of compromise. This past year my client roster contained businesses, rather than brides. Completely shifting my business model. Lots of things changed, lots of compromises made. And that’s okay. What didn’t change? Last year, like every year, I made mistakes, failed more than once (several times), fell down, got up, fell down again… you get the picture. We’re all human. The point is, there are challenges in good seasons just like there are glimmers of good in challenging seasons. Nothing is ever 100 percent always good or always strife, seasons aren’t black and white. That’s okay, too. In fact, I think that’s comforting to know.
What’s in store for the new year?
For me, 2022 was full of thoughtful decisions and slow action. I’m learning to go with the flow and give myself grace, a huge benefit from using my life planner. As for 2023, I hope it’s full of the same slow pace I’ve really come to enjoy. Morning walks, evening books, dog snuggles to make the boring computer tasks less painful (I’m looking at you bookkeeping!). You get the picture.
If we were sitting at my kitchen table in early January, sipping coffee and chatting about our intentions and aspirations, you might ask if I set any resolutions. I think we would then both agree that setting unattainable resolutions is a foolproof way to set oneself up for disappointment. And while I was tempted not to bother setting resolutions this year, I was reminded of the saying “if you don’t know where you’re going, you might not like where you end up.” So instead, I’ve set guidelines (on how I want to live and what I aim to do), rather than hard and fast resolutions. As for my business, I am hopeful to share more of what I love and what inspires me on the blog by brining back some popular series as well as some new series that I’m really looking forward to. And acknowledging that reviving the blog means less time for other projects (more on that later). Furthermore, I am hopeful that this year will be at least a little better than the one before it and that I myself will be at least a little better, too.
Lastly, I am hopeful that your 2023 brings you exactly what you need.