My 2023 Reflection

 

When I tried to reflect on this past year, as I do at the end of the year, I realized I did not have my goals or word of the year in my memory banks. This was surprising to me as I generally reflect and lean into them through out the year. I could be disappointed in myself with this discovery or I could just throw my hands up and take a deep breath. I decided to do the latter.

Continuing the tradition that began last year, I will recognize my top 10 blessings (in random order) and end 2022 on a blessing. (Even though I am actually writing this a few days into the new year of 2024.)

  1. I traveled to Alaska with my husband and daughter.
  2. I was healthy enough to challenge myself with some physical activity.
  3. We bought a travel trailer and added more travel to our lives.
  4. We started our own business.
  5. I watched my nieces get married.
  6. I tried skydiving (in a simulator).
  7. I bought a telescope and often looked at the moon and stars.
  8. I laughed with my kids and giggled with my grandson.
  9. I took a cruise with my husband and just relaxed. 
  10. I became at peace with the changes in my life.

Click here to see my 2023 highlights reel.

My word of the year for 2023 was gratitude. I fell short of posting grateful reflections through out the year, I do believe I moved through life with a heart of gratitude and actions that hopefully were a witness to my feelings.

Goal 1 - Choose Health
I increased my movement and challenged myself. Biking was still difficult, so I only had one ride, but I was able to kayak in a couple locations including Lake LaDue, Punderson State Park and the Mentor Lagoons. A lot of my focus was working on putting one foot in front of the other without planting my bottom on the path. 

Goal 2 - Live Life with Purpose
My purpose was different daily. I began some new hobbies such as sewing and wood crafts. I stopped cursing my rest time and began to recognize my windows of energy and rest which allowed me to get out into the world a bit.

Goal 3 - Get & Stay Connected
I began a book club last January. I was a good time for a few friends and I to get together and discuss a book (and our lives). It petered away when the weather got nice and I hope to begin again during the winter months in 2024.

Goal 4 - Find My Joy and Go After It
I found joy with my husband, my family, dogs, writing, nature, and creative arts. Many of these moments are listed in my 2023 blessings.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Legend-ary Cross Country Trip - Day 5 The Long Drive Holds Surprises

Image
Odometer Reading: 957 - 1340 Departed: Lincoln, Nebraska 8:15 a.m. Arrived: Sterling, Colorado 4:30 p.m. Overnight: Harvest Host - Sky Ranch Golf Course Along the Way   It was great having our bathroom and kitchen in tow along the route of our cross country drive.  It made for easy lunch and restroom stops.  It was also a blessing to be able to shower in the morning, even if you did not have hook ups to water and sewer overnight. But at some point those dirty tanks get full (about day 3 or 4) and they need to be dumped and the water needs to be refilled.  Shoemakers Travel Center in Lincoln offered a free dump station and a water fill up and surprisingly to us, a double tour of the University of Nebraska as we had to drive past it twice after making a wrong turn. Bruce saw an “O” street when it was a “Q” street and for once I didn't correct him fast enough before he made the turn onto “Q” street. This turn caused a little panic and a lot of frustration for the driver...
Read more

Legend-ary Cross Country Trip - Day 2 Our 1st National Park

Image
Odometer Reading: 206 - 356 Departed: Fremont, Indiana 9:50  a.m. EST Arrived: Chesterton, Indiana  11:30 CT Overnight: Indiana Dunes State Park Along the Way It was a short drive day, but that was because we had a day or exploration at our first National Park.  Indiana Dunes National Park Visitor Center was our first stop of the day. One of my goals at each National Park was to get an ornament for our Christmas tree and a stamp for my National Parks Passport.  I had something special planned for this first national park stop.  Kenobi became a “B.A.R.K. Ranger”.  He got a little certificate after we read through proper dog behavior at the National Parks. He received a special dog tag (with a small donation).  Bruce’s task at the visitor centers was to speak to the park rangers about which trails were best for us.  Between having a dog, Bruce’s impending knee replacement, my broken arm and MS, and occasionally towing the trailer into the park th...
Read more

Legend-ary Trip Cancelled?

Image
In May of 2025, we began dreaming out loud about driving our travel trailer across the country for an “epic” adventure. Bruce and I had talked about visiting Zion and Bryce National Parks for over 20 years, but the vacation time from work, finances or our family schedules never allowed for it. The time had come to cross this off the bucket list, we decided we would go if we had the finances to cover it. On that note, we also agreed that this epic trip would replace any big trip that we would take in 2006. We looked deeply at our finances, the time Bruce would have to close the business which meant no income, how much we had saved, and how much we could really afford for this trip. The magic number was $4,000 and we had the finances in place by October and I was given the go ahead to start making reservations. I thought that planning the financial budget was a lot of work. It was only the beginning. Now was time to plan a route, find a place to set up the trailer each night so that I ...
Read more