Thoughts & Things

New Year, New Me?

I'm a bit late for a new year's post, yet here I am making one anyway. Many people like to make resolutions. Many people refuse to make resolutions. I am firmly on the fence, and I refuse to climb down.

I can understand why people make resolutions. I think most people want to be the best version of themselves. I also think that it's hard for most people to be their best selves without a reason. It makes sense that there is a time of year that people broadly consider remaking themselves. That said, most people assume that their best self is far from their current self, and set goals that aren't attainable, at least not in the short term.

I can understand why some people are wholly opposed to making resolutions. Why set a goal that you can't achieve in a short time frame, or maybe not at all? Why assume that your best self is so far away? I can understand why many people would not want to follow the pack to defeat when they could keep on living exactly as they are.

The truth, for me, lies somewhere in the middle. Setting an unattainable goal is just disheartening. Setting no goals at all leaves me without a path to follow. I am a competitive person, but I mostly like to compete with myself. Attainable goals allow me to do that. I won't have to suffer defeat when I fail to reach goals I could never manage in a short time frame, but I have a path to follow, and goals to achieve.

This year, my goals are quite similar to last year. Not because I did poorly with them, but because I know I set myself down the right path. I set myself down a path that makes me feel good, and brings me joy. It's a path I want to continue down because I know it will lead me to my most content self.

I want to continue taking care of my medical needs. Staying on my medications that help me function on some level. Visiting doctors to help me get answers that will help me to eventually get better, even if not 100%. Taking care of myself so that when I try to do anything physical, I won't do myself harm.

I want to continue reading as much as I have. Being on sick leave means that I have a lot of free time, and I am often too unwell to do much of anything. 2017 had me reading more than I have read in years. This year I set my goodreads goal to 75, but I hope to increase that goal if I advance on it too quickly (which I am on track to do). I want to try to finish (or get close to finishing) the Book Riot Read Harder Challenge. I have participated every year, and never done much more than half. I find that even half helps me to broaden my mind in the best way though. I am already up to having completed three tasks out of twenty-four. I want to listen to more audiobooks and read more ebooks. I want to continue reviewing everything I read. My life has always been books, but this is truer than ever as I live a life where books are one of the few things I can almost always manage.

I want to write more. I feel like 2017 was a really good year for writing for me. I entered a number of contests, I kept up with my blog, and I stayed active here on WDC. That said, I also faltered at certain points throughout the year. 2017 was a bad year for me in so many ways. I lost my grandmother and my father, had a lot of related drama (which makes me sick to even think of), and my health was (and is) incredibly poor. January so far has not been a great writing month for me. But I want to pick this up. I want to write, and so I will. I will enter contests (and I already have), I will keep my blog up to date, and I will stay active.

I want to help make the world a better place. This may seem like an unattainable goal, but there are small things that can always be done. I volunteer weekly with children at the library. I attend rallies and protests when I am physically able to (and I have an amazing group of supportive friends there with me each time to ensure I am not hurting myself). I speak out on social media, and share important information with others. If there are other things I find I can do that I am physically able to do, I will do them. Community involvement is the first step in improving the world around us.

I don't plan on making 2018 about a new me. I just want to improve me. I have attainable goals, and I plan on sticking to them. I plan on doing more of the things that make me happy and healthy. I can see why people would or would not make resolutions. But for me, it's about making goals, and the new year just happens to be the best time to reset those.