Resolutions/Happy New Year | Sunday Morning Thoughts

I cannot believe it’s already the beginning of a new year. I am excited for what 2015 will bring me, and I have a lot of mixed feelings about leaving 2014 behind.

2014 was by far one of the most challenging, life changing, happiest, saddest, reflective, adult-like years of my life. From dealing with heartbreak and new romance; getting rejected from my two top Grad programs and then getting accepted into my third; graduating from UMaine and realizing just how much I am going to miss the college of my heart always;

finding an apartment on Long Island and realizing Orono is a bubble in which rent is very cheap; moving hundreds of miles away to a place where I knew only one person; starting Grad school with brand new professors and taking on a subject I hadn’t fully realized I knew very little about; meeting new and amazing people (I can’t stress the importance of this one enough); seeing places I can’t wait to go back and see again;

turning 22; having a pre-quarter life crisis and becoming overwhelmed with making decisions; finally deciding that journalism is not what I want to pursue, and then freaking out in a “then what the hell am I doing here” kind of fashion;

losing Madelyn; gaining Marley; wishing I wasn’t so broke so I could hold off moving back to Maine and continue living close to a city I’ve been in love with my entire life; starting to feel happy to be geographically closer to my family and friends when moving back to Maine;

losing my grandmother (I’ve written about this, and although those three words don’t do my feelings and her memory justice, my other posts and discussions do);

moving back to Maine, trying to find a job and then finding one I am qualified for; getting to spend the holidays with my family and seeing friends I haven’t seen in a long time; and truly realizing how fortunate and happy I am with how my life is turning out. This year has been trying, uplifting, off-putting, and most importantly: enlightening.

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I do have two primary resolutions in mind: stay fit and eat healthier/cleaner foods. But there are other parts of my life I want to improve upon, so here they are.

~ Spend way more time with my sister.
~ Save my money for the future, because although I would love to have that handbag right now, I want to be able to live and play without worrying about running out of money.
~ Be honest about my feelings and desires, and not afraid to say what’s on my mind.
~ Submit my writing for publication. I will make 2015 the year I get up the courage to submit my writing in a large scale, not just every now and then.
~ Read before bed. I would say “read as much as possible,” but resolutions usually stick better when they include specific instructions.
~ Drop the habit of falling asleep with the television/Netflix on. I developed this habit in college, and believe it contributes to my poor sleeping patterns. Also, the above resolution provides me with a positive alternative for pre-sleep activity.
~ Spend way more time with my friends and family. Whether we go out or stay in, that time spent is so valuable to me and keeps me sane.
~ Take more pictures. An annoying amount. I have fallen out of this habit, and would like to fall back in.

I hope you have made some serious resolutions, and wish you the best of luck in keeping them through the end of the year and beyond. Here’s to a new year, new adventures and new revelations that I hope bring you happiness. Happy New Year!

Addendum:
I had forgotten about these resolutions, or that I had made them. Since the year is more than halfway over, I thought this was a good post to return to as I browsed my old blog. I have been able to stick to these resolutions, some more intensely than others, and I am happy about that. Although I still need to improve greatly in some areas (I still fall asleep with the TV on most nights), I am okay with the progress I have made with others. Okay? Hmmm, this bothers me. This has bothered me for some time, “okay.” My more-than-halfway-through-the-year resolution: don’t settle for okay.