Ring Out The Old; Ring In The New

I don't know about you, but I always look forward to the first day of January. I really couldn't care less about New Years Eve and I find that the usual festivities of the New Year celebrations are generally ridiculous and, for me at least, contradictory to the general purpose of the celebration. The thought of going out and drinking obscene amounts of alcohol, waking up with a headache and pictures of any stupid behavior circulating on the Internet, just makes my head swirl...

OK, so I'm a bit of a party pooper I guess. For me, celebrating the New Year is representative of how I hope to spend the New Year. I have a habit of perusing my new, clean, empty calendar...in this case, the calendar for 2012. I love to see which days of the week certain dates fall on and as I turn from month to month, I visualize the anticipated events of each block of days. I see flowers peeking their tiny heads out of snow covered ground welcoming a new season. I see the excitement in the eyes of my *precious* grandchildren as they turn one year older, start school, learn to ride bikes, swim, skate and consume every new second with excitement and wonder. I also see anniversaries; some joyful, some sad. I feel the beloved sun warming my face, visualize amazing vacations, then the leaves filling in on the branches of the old willows in my yard, and then the leaves falling, creating a huge mess on my lawn and the eventual return to the excitement and anticipation of yet another season of the Holidays..Cycles....you get the point.

Each time that I look at all of these blank squares, the starkness of the emptiness hits me and I realize what a HUGE blessing my new calendar is. Each day is blank, clean, fresh and waiting for me fill it up! I have the choice, each day, to fill it with goodness, excitement, growth and progression, happiness, joy, peace, service and love OR, I have the choice to squander each precious moment wallowing in my own self-pity, wasting precious time filling it with useless, senseless things. Every year, I am faced with these choices...it becomes a sort of responsibility to me.

Those of you who know me, know that I don't set your typical New Years Resolutions. I do set goals, but I have found that disappointment and let-down often accompany my ever well intentioned resolutions. So, instead, I have adopted one Word that I try to center on as a focus for all that I do. For every decision I make and every action that I take. This is something that I seriously contemplate and ponder because it will be my companion for 365 days and will hold me accountable for my entire life experience in 2012...

So after much thought and prayer, my word is: BALANCE

Life offers so many changes. As I fill in my 2012 calendar with the known plans, I also realize that in an instant those plans can (and usually will) be changed. Each square represents a day in my life that hasn't yet been lived and if, God willing, I am still around to live that particular square, I want it to count. I have struggled with Balance in 2011. My life took some huge detours; some were anticipated, others were complete shockers. As a commuter trying to balance life in two different states, its only fitting that this is my new word. I have faltered in this area and hope to improve immensely.

So as I ring out the old and lay it to rest, I look forward to ringing in the new and anticipating the challenges, joys, triumphs and even sorrows that are waiting for me to embrace. Through it all, I hope to emerge stronger and more vibrant. I hope to fill each day with uplifting, inspirational material that will hold my hand as I walk with Balance through my journeys and to my destinations of life.

I pray that we all have a 2012 filled with Peace, Love, Happiness, Endurance, Prosperity, Health and Total Joy. It's inevitable that we will all be tried and tested, but may we all rise triumphant and emerge stronger, wiser and more fulfilled than ever! God Bless...