Just another day (journal entry from 1.1.2010)

New Year...what a strange idea.

I approached New Year’s Eve this year with a fairly casual attitude, mostly because it snuck up on me. I was excited to go snowboarding then party into the morning hours with close friends. We had our 50s attire ready (per the theme request), and I was excited to not spend a lot of money but instead have a lot of fun.

Later in the night it dawned on me that it really was a new year! That may sound ridiculous, but I also sustained a mild head injury on the mountain so that might account for some of the confusion. Overall I was just shocked that another year went by so fast. (My friends with children swear that it just gets faster the older we get…probably true.)

Even later in the night someone mentioned it was a new decade. What?! How did this happen?! I started thinking back to the last change of decade: the dreaded Y2K. I was home from college and went to a “formal” party at a friend’s house. Actually, it was her parents’ house and I was still underage. A boy I knew kissed me at midnight and this made me blush because in 2000 I was still quite naive.

In ten years I have moved more than 500 miles 3 times, and lived in 5 different states. I have traveled outside the US 3 times and within the US for 4 months by myself. I have been homesick and happy. I made a few bad friends and a lot of great ones. Most important I have experienced heartbreak and love. Real love.

I have said that I do not think I have changed much since high school; my core is still the same. I value my friends and family above work and material items. I love art and practice less than I should. Nature still blows my mind and I am constantly looking for new challenges. The point is, that core is definitely still there, but it is so much stronger now. Every moment I have experienced (and sometimes endured) has affirmed who I am. I know that I can choose who I want to be and what I want to do. I am confident and happy with the foundation set for me and now I am building upwards.

I do not do the resolution routine because to me New Year's Day is just another day. Real goals will be achieved regardless of the last digit tacked onto the date. Instead of looking forward I tend to look back and today I am grateful for the time passing quickly. It has been a wonderful decade and I look forward to the next.