Resolutions

I have decided, my darling readers (all 2 of you), that I want to make a few resolutions for this coming academic year. I've never been huge on New Years' Resolutions because I've never quite understood the reasoning behind making resolutions (with the intentions of sticking to them) in the middle of the winter. But resolutions at the start of something tangibly new makes more sense to me. So, before the new school year begins, I've decided to write out (hoping it will help me stick to them) my resolutions. Feel free to call me out on them at any point!

1. I will continue to blog at least once a week. Over the summer, I've come to realize that I really do enjoy blogging and that even if my posts are not earth-shattering for anyone [including myself], they do provide a wonderful outlet to write whatever is going on is this crazy head of mine.

2. I will explore Denver/Colorado as though I am a tourist here--this means I will go somewhere new (bar, restaurant, event, place, etc) at least once a month. Many of my friends have traveled to fabulous places this summer and I've been incredibly jealous. However, I've also come to realize that Denver/Colorado is an amazing place and I have not done it any justice by becoming caught up in the everydayness of my life and ignoring the awesomeness that is all around me.

3. I will mediate for 10 minutes five days a week (with the hopes of extending the time). Whenever I get back into the groove of mediation, I consistently find myself to be more relaxed, better focused, and with an overall sense of lightness. Sometimes I lose track of how great it makes me feel and allow the daily parts of living to interfere. I always regret it when I do.

4. I will make time for relationships (of all kinds) by interacting with friends at least once per week. I've been honored this summer with getting to really know a few new friends and with strengthening my relationships with a few old ones. These people make me feel blessed to be alive and I want to continue growing and maintaining these friendships. I also want to allow myself to be open to the possibility of a romantic relationship, should it come along.

5. I will focus on experience and learning and not on grades. (Didn't think any of these would be academic, did ya?). I am so prone to getting caught up on the final product that I lose sight of everything I'm doing along the way. In my heart, I truly believe that grades are only as important as the amount of learning that comes along with them. But I've been so conditioned to worry about getting an A (not an A- mind you) that I lose sight of the experience. This will most likely be my last year of school, possibly ever, and I want to take it in for all it's worth. I want to do the readings (well, most of them); I want to have discussions; I want to learn from my professors and colleagues; I want to focus my energies into my internship where I'll get the most hands-on experience. That's what I want from my last year.

A part of me feels silly making all these resolutions since I'm rarely very good at keeping to them. But I've spent a lot of time this summer thinking about how I want this school year to go and what I need to do in order to shape it that way. My original list had about 10 items, but I realized I need to be realistic and so I honed it down to the 5 that felt (a) the most doable, (b) the most beneficial, and (c) had measurable outcomes (except that I haven't figured out how to measure #5).

Here's to sticking with it!