January 1, 2015

Day 1 of 365


I generally don’t make resolutions.  Not because I don’t think it’s a good tradition, but because I’m generally partying too hard with friends to care about making some resolution aimed at making me a better person.  And in my usual state of bliss while partying, there is nothing I deem that necessary to make ‘better’. 

Well this year is different.

For once, the always popular ‘party girl’ stayed home alone on NYE and was asleep shortly after midnight.  And in my solitary, I thought a lot about the last year.  At first glance I would have said that 2014 was not a very good year for me, as it was far overshadowed by the amazing 2013 I had; however, in retrospect it taught me a lot of things to which I can only be grateful. 

“The arrow can only be used by pulling it backwards; so when life is dragging you back…keep aim, keep focus and it may just shoot you into something great”
I could sit here and write about heartbreak, which was definitely felt, but I’d rather write about trust.  I learned that you must be weary of trusting too quickly and too much.  I nearly made the biggest mistake of my life by putting my future and my heart in the safekeeping of someone who was wreckless in their words and actions.  But now looking back on the situation, I thank this person for finally realizing the weight their words played on my life and letting me go.  It may have been a very dark period for me at first, but prevented me from making a terrible mistake that could have cost me my future.  The Indian arrow on my back is my representation of this life lesson.

“It’s okay to let go, it just may plant the seeds to something more beautiful”
This last year also taught me that people will move on whether you like it or not.  Past loves…friends… they move on and they create new lives.  And the only way to be at peace with this is to move on yourself.  This does not mean completely ‘let go’, but move on and find happiness in new things and new people.  And as I look in the mirror every morning, I am reminded of this lesson by my dandelion tattoo. 

“If you can’t live longer, live deeper”
Not all that happened in 2014 was a let down.  Quite the contrary, actually.  I continued to travel extensively.  Berlin, Rio, Sao Paulo (twice), Milan, Rome, BVI, Miami, Paris (twice), Prague, London (4 times), Barcelona, San Francisco, New York City, New Orleans, Amsterdam, Istanbul… These are places that some can only dream of going to in a year, but this has become my reality and I am most grateful.  It’s the Italian proverb that states “if you can’t live longer, live deeper” and this is what I intend to continue living by in 2015.  Continuing to enrich my life by seeing new places and meeting new people. 

As I said before... This year is different and so I have made my resolutions.

Health resolutions:
1. Drink more water.
2. Choose clean foods over processed food; no matter how much more difficult it is to cook it.  This means no more ramen! (oh, the horror)
3. Consume less alcohol.  Don’t say yes to the early morning drinks people offer. (I'll thank myself the next morning)
4. Workout at least 3 times a week. 

Lifestyle resolutions:
1. Call my friends and family more often.
2. Pay off one credit card in full and cut it up.
3. Wake up earlier in the mornings...well, at least by a little.

Now let's see if I actually achieve these....

Cheers - S.