When Daniel and I were newly married, he convinced me to get my motorcycle license. To do this I signed up for a weekend motorcycle safety training course where I learned the laws and took a written test, but I also had to physically learn how to ride a motorcycle. One of the things they taught in the course was that wherever your eyes go your bike would follow.
I think this concept is why more than a decade ago –in lieu of a New Year's resolution– I began thinking and writing about a word to define my upcoming year. It helps me set my focus for the upcoming year, and every New Year's day when I look back at my previous year and word, I realize how much my year was aligned with the word I had picked. My year follows my intentions.
At the beginning of last year I sat down and wrote about how I wanted to continue to do the things that I knew were good for me. I wanted to show up. I wanted to be intentional. I wanted to pick joy when life was hard. I wanted to continue to trust in God knowing that tomorrow is never promised. I think I did all of those things well. I continued when it was easy and I continued when it was hard.
Overall, we had a really good year. We took a big trip out west, driving over 7,600 miles and visiting quite a few national parks and monuments. There were ">hard moments during that trip, but there were also amazing moments we will never forget.
During the year we helped Jack get through a tonsillectomy – one of the worst experiences of his life, but he came through it and learned that eventually things really do get better. On a personal note, I set goals for hiking and reading and blew both goals out of the water by continuing to read and hike even when I didn't feel like it.
We have continued to care for our elderly dog. We thought we would lose her in August of 2020, but she has held on and we have continued to love her through the hard parts – including accidents and having to let her out 2+ times throughout the night for most of the last 16 months.
Sometime during the last several months I experienced a shift. I'm so glad we have continued to show up in our own lives, but I've been convicted that it is time to thrive. I think thriving is a step beyond just persevering when life is hard or in the doldrums. It's more than surviving. There were a lot of unknowns in 2020 and unknowns continued to pop up in 2021. I still hear people talk about how we need to do "xyz" so that we can return to normal. Somewhere along the way, I departed from that frame of mind. At this point whatever we are in is normal and I am ready to thrive where I'm at, regardless of the circumstances around me.
Some would say I have already been doing that. And perhaps they are right, but there are things that can be improved. For one, my health. I am taking more stock in how much I move on a daily basis and what I am eating. Am I drinking enough water? Am I making these things a priority?
Daniel and I have also started to make a better effort at spending time together. Granted we weren't able to go out for our 19th anniversary, but we are carving out pockets of time to date again. Hopefully we will continue to thrive in this arena of our lives.
For our homeschool, I don't want to just check things off my list for the day as I am sometimes wont to do. I would like to improve in the wonder that is a part of our every day learning as well as not neglect the parts of teaching that I don't love as much.
A friend recently told me that she thought I was really good at consistently showing up for things. She is right in some regards, I'm really good at showing up and excelling at the things that I want to do. I'm not so good at consistently doing other things – Daniel could tell you all the things I could be more focused on. I also want to thrive in the areas of my life that aren't my favorite. Or at the very least improve.
So in 2022, while I am hopeful for more adventures and continued intentionality in how we live out our lives as a family, I will also be working to thrive and grow right where I'm planted, regardless of the world around me. I can't fix life for anyone else, but I can make a difference in the lives of the people who live with me. My prayer is that 2022 will be a year of thriving for me and my family.
"Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; 2 but his delight is in the law of the Lord and on his law he meditates day and night. 3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers."
Psalm 37:3-5 ESV
"Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. 4 Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. 5 Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act."
Ezekiel 17:24 ESV
"And all the trees of the field shall know that I am the Lord; I bring low the high tree, and make high the low tree, dry up the green tree, and make the dry tree flourish. I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it.”
"And all the trees of the field shall know that I am the Lord; I bring low the high tree, and make high the low tree, dry up the green tree, and make the dry tree flourish. I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it.”
My Words from Years Past: