New Year

I attended a short life coaching session with a member of a chorus from Canada, who visited our chorus to help us out with our mental game a while back and now am a member of her newsletter e-mailing. (She was the one who suggested that I blog since I want to be a writer when I grow up and all.)

Here is the beginning of her, what to do with the new year piece of her newsletter.

1 COMPLETE /

Completion of the year that has passed is important for being able to move forward unencumbered into a bright and joyful new year. In order to complete, we first need to reflect and remember.

I like to look at 8 areas of my life in this process: Relationships (Family, Friends, Love), Recreational Activities (aka Fun!), Career/Business, Personal growth and development, health and fitness, Financial, Home, My contribution to the world.

I grab a piece of paper and make 4 columns - what worked in 2009, what sucked, what I learned, what I want to change - sit down with a strong cuppa java, good tunes playing, and let my mind go. There is something about the simple acknowledgment of "what was" that is incredibly freeing.

When you are finished your lists, read them over, and reflect. Take time to fully acknowledge and celebrate your "Woo Hoo!" moments. Take time to fully acknowledge and feel your disappointments or losses. Sit with your lists for as long as you need to. And then say goodbye to them and move on to creating your 2010.

I'm going to do that here since I type faster than I write and why not, I am becoming so lax in my blog upkeep and would like to change that.

Relationships:

What worked: Fred and I have been in a church community and have made some friends there, I enjoy my chorus as usual and my women's bible study. I have new friends in Amy, Tiffany, and a new more frequent group of friends in my Tuesday Daytimers Chorus group. Lunch on Tuesdays with chorus is great. Lunch with Tiffany is great. Walking with Amy is lovely and exercise at the same time.

I have spent a lot of time with family, seeing them for a week in June, October and then December.

Fred and I get along very well, it is nice to see him for a few minutes in the morning and we love our weekends and evenings together.

What sucked: So many kids and teachers had to be said goodbye to as I left Graham Middle School in June. I had so hoped to see the 6th graders I had the previous year graduate this year and to have so many say hi to me and hug me in the halls as I keep up with all of their lives and concerns. It has been hard to keep up with the teachers I was friends with as so much of friendship is proximity, so I miss them too. It has been a little lonely without the kids as well, staying at home as I have since June.

What I learned: I need people, not sure if I am a "people person" hmmmm, but I need to see people and have walks during the day or go hang out at the library. I have always thought of myself as task oriented instead of people oriented, but it must not be true, I realize the reason I taught was to be with kids, to feel important to them and show them that I care about them and it is important to me. So, I am much happier the days that I have some people plans.

What I want to change: I need something meaningful to do with my life. I have signed up to volunteer at the library, which should add a few days of people time and maybe I will see some of my previous students there as they stop by after school.

Recreational Activities:

What worked: I read a lot of books, especially non-fiction, that made me think about stuff and gave me interesting things to say (Outliers, Mindset, Mindless Eating, Healthy Skeptic, books on how to become a writer and some other books I don't remember). Fred and I have gone on a few nice short trips that were fun. I started this blog, which, when I kept up with it daily, was a good goal and made me think too. The international contest with my chorus in Tennessee was exciting.

What sucked: I watched too much tv, which didn't give me as much to talk about. I had a lot of free time and not enough goals. I would like Fred and I to have more outdoorsy stuff that we like to do together.

What I learned: I like setting goals and accomplishing them, whether it was practicing our songs and my face for our international contest, or reading through books on how to write and setting a goal for how much I would read every day. Outdoor recreation is more fulfilling than indoor (television).

What I'd like to change: I'd like a walking partner for every day, both for the relationship and the accountability. I'd like to take either a yoga class or a water aerobics or something that is challenging and regular and with people.

I'll keep going tomorrow.