I woke up early this morning, after going to bed late (or quite earlier this morning), to then drive home and start off the day with my family. We've got a day of relaxation planned but, also a day of chores and work. My family has a tradition where we believe that whatever you do on the first day of the year will set the tone for the rest of the year. We make sure to wear one new piece of clothing so that we are financially in the Black, we put on clean sheets on the beds and vacuum the house so that we are not messy throughout the year, and we decide what kind of past times we will dedicate our time to. I've chosen to write (not only on the blog but one of my own stories as well), to play guitar, to read and to colour. As a family, we are having dinner together and we've selected a board game to play afterwards. I've talked to the rest of my family, and certain of my friends as well, and wished them well. It may seem like a strange tradition, but it is one that motivates us throughout the year.
The new year is also a time to get motivated to get more out of life; new year equals new possibilities. For roughly three years, my mother has started up a habit where she must do something she has never done every single day. Whether this means going to one of her favourite restaurants at a different time of day with someone new, or to go on a different trip, or read a book she has yet picked up, this allows her to take full advantage of her life. She also keeps track of the new things she's done and writes it down in a journal. Every once in a while, she'll let us know what we were doing one, two, or three years ago on that very same day. The way I remind myself that I've got a great life and encourage myself to do something different and to try new things is by listing off every night before I go to bed what I am grateful for in my life. Because it is my mother who told me that she heard this statement once: "What if you woke up this morning with only the things you were grateful for?" and from that moment I've been keeping track as well. It made me sad to think that many people would wake up with nothing, and I promised myself that I would never be one of those people. That is one resolution that I make every year and that I've been able to keep.
So I challenge you my dearest readers, just as I am challenging myself, to make this year as memorable as you can, to live it as if it is your last because you never know when that will turn out to be true. Time may seem to blur together, and life may fall short of a dull routine but you'd be surprised to feel like "nothing has changed, yet everything is different." -Jean-Paul Sartre
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