Do I believe that in just a few days, 2021 will end and 2022 will begin? Not really. There was once a time in my life when I fully believed that the new year couldn’t start until the ball dropped in New York’s Time Square. And then I got older and I moved my family with young kids to the west coast. Things changed. I saw things with older, more tired eyes. I cared more about going to bed early on New Years Eve than partying in the new year.
It was right about then that I realized that my kids didn’t know how to tell the time, and New York City’s ball drop still worked to bring in the new year. Bonus – being on the west coast, it happened at 9 p.m. instead of midnight. This allowed me to go to bed early. And you know what else happened? I realized that the ball didn’t actually drop in Times Square, nay, it glided awkwardly and slowly down the equivalent of a super sized stripper pole. From then on, this new year new you stuff felt like bullshit, honestly.
With all of this cynicism, the idea of setting new years resolutions or goals or creating annual vision boards felt rather silly. But people, 2020 was a major shit show of a year, so I felt compelled to do SOMETHING to make 2021 better. My girlfriend Tiffy (I’m pretty sure I have never called her that to her face) was picking one word to guide her year, and I felt inspired to do the same. My 2021 was therefore guided by my chosen word, “FRESH.”
Keeping it Fresh
I legit used the word ‘fresh’ to help me to make decisions, like any tenet or rule. If I was torn between ordering takeout from a tried and true spot versus trying something new, I’d go for the new restaurant because I was being all fresh and shit. That’s a small example, but imagine that kind of thing for 12 full months, and you get the gist of it.
Fresh was a great word! I used it as a way to keep us moving and grooving (yes, I just typed that), but also personally with my own growth. I am a big fan of learning new things, and fully believe that the day I become boring is the day I die. So in 2021 I got a career coach and changed jobs, I started this blog, I got eyelash extensions, I overcame my fear of yoga, and I fucking said yes to a marriage proposal. That’s about as fresh as I could have imagined 2021 being.
Was 2021 an easy year? No. It is starting to dawn on me that we have reached a stage in life where nothing is fully happy, easy, smooth, glamorous, glossy, or perfect. I could be all cliché and say that the struggles we face make us stronger, but I really don’t know if that’s true. At 45 years old, I sense glimmers of mortality on the distant horizon – is that morbid to say? Not that I think I’m going to die anytime soon, but I am definitely feeling as if I need to live my life to the fullest, every day.
Here comes 2022
So what is 2022 going to look like? I’ll tell you what words I want to manifest in the next year of my life: happy, peaceful, loved, loving, laughter, adventurous, safe, independent, successful. Each word is intentional and carries with it its own challenge for me. My professional career coach had me write down statements that define who I am in the workplace. She asked that I read them to myself daily, and speak them out loud. I may do the same for myself personally. Instead of one word, it will a statement that incorporates the above.
Here goes:
2022 will be a year full of happiness, peace, love, laughter, adventure, independence, safety, and success.