There’s almost nothing I love more than the thrill of the New Year. The possibilities! The clean slate! The super-charged goals and the 12 months ahead, paved with opportunities for achievement! The New Year is a first date with the gorgeous person you’ve had your eye on for months. It’s. Just. So. Tantalizing. I’ve had a crush on New Year’s since I was old enough to use a pencil. My childhood New Year’s Eves were spent drafting a detailed list of 100 lofty ideas for self-betterment.
A few of my totally realistic childhood goals:
- Write in my journal for one hour a day (one HOUR?)
- Write a complete novel or a children’s book (either/or, because a book is a book)
- Design five Victorian hats (Why five? Why Victorian?)
- Submit ten poems for publishing (okay, ten poems – doable)
- Practice my handwriting and cursive for thirty minutes a day (Since I did not have a typewriter or a computer, one might assume I would be practicing my handwriting while writing the poems, novel or children’s book…)
- Learn one new thing every day (I still do this)
- Read the dictionary cover to cover (#nerd)
- Write a letter to my grandmother once a week (done-ish)
- Keep my room clean (not achieved)
- Learn French (still learning)
- Knit several matching Barbie outfits for my sisters (Surprise! I actually did this one)
Oh, childhood me. I was so adorably Ben Franklin-meets-Pollyanna. By the end of the year I may have achieved four of my hundred goals (at least consistently), but it did not stop me from making a new list of 100 when the next year came around. Over time, I realized that (duh) 100 — though a very pretty number — is a ridiculous quantity for goals. One can scarcely remember them all, much less work toward them with any regularity. These days rather than listing out my goals like bullet points on an multiple choice quiz, I create an overarching theme for the year, with several smaller “legs” that support the dominant goal. Truth be told, it really does make a difference to have a theme and an outline for the year to come. I like to know where I’m going and how I plan to get there.
Olive Knits is a big part of my vision for 2016. And in January, Olive Knits turns 1. Kind of perfect, right?
I can’t wait to share the New Year with you. So many good things are ahead. 🙂 Stay tuned… just two more weeks to go!
M.
