So it’s the last day of 2013. At the beginning of the year I set a goal for myself. (After all, I do like goals). The plan was to write 100 blog posts during the year. I peaked at 88 posts last year, so I figured 100 would be no problem.
Yikes! The task ended up being more difficult than I anticipated. See, I have always enjoyed blogging for the sake of blogging: to recount stories, reflect on significant events in my life, and track fitness and hiking goals. With each mountain peak came a synopsis. But once I committed to writing 100 blog posts, writing suddenly felt like a chore. Even though it forced me to jot down my thoughts and ideas, oftentimes I would write for the sole purpose of ticking another entry off the list. For many posts, my heart wasn’t in it, and I don’t like that. Am I glad I did the challenge? Absolutely. But will I do it again? Most likely not.
Looking back, it’s interesting to see that I blogged the most in October. I wrote about random stuff like Heritage Park and toasted coconut ice cream, but I also wrote my most heart-felt post of the year on the anniversary of my grandmother’s passing.
It’s no surprise that the least blogged month was March. I never really wrote about what happened in March. To recall, I accepted a new position at the beginning of December 2012 as a senior analyst. I would only last 4 months. Honestly, the job did not go as planned. I will be no means play a victim in this post, but I felt that I was lead to believe the position would be something different. I also didn’t see eye to eye with management on certain issues. In the end, I acknowledged that the job was not a good fit for me, and resigned. Unfortunately, I didn’t have another position lined up, and would spend the following 3 months in a state of anxiety with the volatility of many highs and lows. It wasn’t until I began working in June when my writing would pick up momentum once again. As a positive, during my unemployment, I did manage to travel to Ireland, spend a week with my family at home, road-trip to Ottawa, and watch hours upon hours of How I Met Your Mother and Spartacus. Time well spent I say.
2013 was also a very interesting year for reflection. I assessed who I want in my life and the direction I want to take my life. This was not without emotional strain and sadness. I’ve pulled away from some connections, yet formed stronger bonds with others. I’ve looked at my career path and realized that maybe it’s time to work toward something different. I’ve grown attached to Calgary, and yet I feel ready for a big adventure. It’s been a year of dichotomies, and while they provide interesting forks in the proverbial road, they’ve kept the year unpredictable and exciting.
And so I conclude 2013 in a much different frame of mind than its commencement. My vision statement for the past year included points around: taking action, financial control, health and fitness, the outdoors, ownership of my choices, and finding some level of peace. I didn’t realize it until writing this post, but I really feel these focus areas characterize my journey over the last year. It’s been interesting to say the least, and I’m looking forward to what 2014 will bring. Oh, and why will it be a new beginning? Well, I plan to revamp the blog yet again, but this time, I’ll be transitioning over to WordPress. Yes, I think it’s about time. Exciting things ahead!
How is it that the years just seem to fly by? I guess with age, time seemingly passes more quickly. That doesn’t mean that life gets any more dull! On the contrary. I’m hoping for a wonderful 2013 filled with all the ups and downs that make life worth living (cough cliché). With that said, hoping for a wonderful year is very different than taking actions for a wonderful year. I joked with some people that I would be coming up with vision and mission statements in order to promote action. That’s probably more formalized than how I would like to approach the year; however, I do enjoy creating lists, setting goals, and documenting progress, so perhaps it is appropriate to think about 2013 in the context of a few important focal points rolled into a personal vision. How do I want to approach the next 365 days? I take this question fairly seriously, but not in a new year’s resolution sort of way. I feel like the holiday season provides an opportunity to reflect on the past year, to become (re)grounded by family and friends, and to think about the upcoming choices and attitude of the next year.
And there goes another year! Just spending NYE with the fam, some appetizers, and CityTV 🙂 Wonderful…
HIKES & HAMSTRINGS 