Review, Restore and Reload– That was the theme of my thought process during the week of Christmas. I was anxiously anticipating the end of a great year that highlighted frustrations, obstacles, battles, victories, high blood pressure, restored friendships and lost loved ones. The hustle and bustle of the holiday season attracts frustration, stress, depleted finances, smiles, happiness and sometimes the empty space of loneliness when the loved ones we desire to share the season with aren’t physically available.
December is the month when my procrastination rips through my hidden flaw of not mastering the art of budgeting six months in advance for summertime shopping. Instead I’m running around like a lost chicken along with all the other procrastinators. Normally me and the patriarch of our village head out to the mall for the annual gift hunt, two weeks before Christmas. Not this year– we waited exactly three days before Christmas. Of course we had the infamous flasks and brown bags camouflaging shots of Brandy and Vodka as we spent the night in laughter while witnessing our empty wallets flatline.
As usual, Christmas m
orning was a great success and our blood, sweat and lightweight wallets will recover. The sight of my “mini me” smiling happily while enjoying gifts that “Santa” brought is all I needed to erase any lingering buyer’s remorse.
The beautiful day ended so quickly and suddenly I was sitting quietly looking at the Christmas tree, reflecting on the past year as the lights glistened so eloquently. I realized as I began reminiscing on the days and months leading up to the season, that life is passing us by so quickly. In a full year I have loss weight, gained weight, acquired high blood pressure, began working out, traveled for work, traveled for myself, forgotten to workout, promised to stay on track, forgotten goals, eaten a lot of cupcakes, vowed to stop eating cupcakes, written about cupcakes, created the Cupcake Chronicles, discovered many new cupcakeries, vowed to stay away from all cupcakeries, stop filming the Cupcake Chronicles, began writing a new book; yet I felt like the year was ending too soon. There were so many promises, objectives and goals that I hadn’t tried, failed and promised to start again.
Yet…here I am again. Turning my holiday analysis and blues into a list of resolutions that I vow to carry out upon the arrival of New Year’s Eve. As soon as the sun goes down and my family gathers for our annual game night, I begin to feel renewed and refreshed from the excitement of a new year and revitalized resolutions. The new year is the perfect time to leave the past behind us, and to make our mark for new beginnings, new goals, and new outlooks. I just hope I don’t get stuck in the silo that I often find myself in by mid March, and I’ve returned to cursing, yelling and spitting at my treadmill — as I tug and pull onto the distant memory of resolutions I’ve vowed to restore while I watch them fall behind. So here I sit, armed, locked and loaded with a motivated dream to reload for the New Year.
HAPPY NEW YEAR – 2013!