Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Happy 2013!

Happy 2013 everyone! Sorry it has been so long since I have posted, lots of things have happened since my last post, but I haven't seemed to find the time to write about them. I'm back at school with a little bit of free time so I hope I can wrap up all that God has done for me the past month or so!

Well, my sister Kelley got engaged over break...that's pretty darn exciting! My family and I knew when it was happening but had to keep it a secret of course and let me tell you, it was hard. If you ever want a test of willpower, try living with someone you know is about to experience such an exciting time of their life, but they have no clue and you can't be the one to tell them! Matt (the fiance) has said before he was waiting for his name to appear in this blog so I guess there wouldn't be a better time then now to mention him! He is a great guy, not only am I excited to have a fellow redhead in the family, but I am excited for him specifically to be my brother-in-law. He makes Kelley so happy and that is all a sister can ask for, really. As a Christian I live to serve others, and to delight in their happiness. Matt has allowed me to delight in both his and Kelley's happiness and I love the idea of having another person added to the family. I'm sure my dad is happy to have an actual guy in the family and not just male dogs! I cannot wait to see how this wedding and more importantly marriage turns out, if it is any reflection of the marriage between my mom and dad, and from what I have seen of Matt's parents, Kelley and Matt will be blessed for the rest of their life. 

More exciting news in the family...Maggie has sold a million dollars worth of houses! I am reminded today of that success today from the cup that holds my coffee, it was a Christmas gift that has her company's logo on it! Go Keller Williams!

It is such a joy seeing both my sisters being successful in their lives. I have nothing but praises to God regarding my family this year and that is more than I could ever ask for!

Okay, moving past my family. Normally I have a list of New Year's resolutions ready by the time January 1 comes along, but this year I didn't. Last year I had two big resolutions. The first was to get in shape (along with what seems like the rest of the world) before I went to Ghana. I wanted to be able to keep up with the long days I knew I would face and more than that just be confident in my ability to live a healthy lifestyle. I think I had accomplished that by the time I went to Ghana and continue to practice that healthy lifestyle today. Another resolution was to take risks. I make this resolution every year to push myself to do things out of my comfort zone...in a positive way! I think I accomplished that more than ever this past year! Who knew I would go to Africa, declare two new minors my Junior year, get a tattoo that I couldn't be happier with and continue to dive into my faith without knowing where it will take me. I think the biggest risk of all this year is relying on God more than ever to lead me everywhere, not just in one aspect of my life, but in all. 

This year however, I am struggling to find a New Year's resolution other than to continue to take risks. Until today it bothered me. I've ALWAYS had a resolution. Today though, I realized that maybe it is okay for me not to. Maybe that means I am finally at a point in my life where I am more than content, I'm happy, with how I live. I've always had things to tell God I want to change in my life. I've always had aspects about my faith, school, friends, relationships that I wish I could change and I thought I had to wait until the New Year to do something about them. Why wait until January 1st to do so? I think I realized that this past year and have reached a new kind of happiness. It is a confident happy, one that I know I am happy because of the hard work I've put into each aspect of my life and I'm not waiting for someone or something else to determine my happiness. For a long time my attitude and my happiness was determined by comparing my life to others. This year, I found joy in looking past comparison and actually serving others, and looking inward and seeing worth in what I have accomplished without comparing it to anything. 

So this year I may not have a resolution, but that is okay. I like to think of it maybe as a New Year's Continuation. I want to keep going with what I discovered this past year and maybe in April or September I come up with a resolution that I know I can start right then and there and not wait until 2014. 

1 comment:

  1. Love it! I am so happy for Matt and Kelley too, we are lucky to have him in our lives. Lucky for you I'm actually at $1.9million in sales today, you know what that means...more coffee mugs! Keep up the continuation, you are doing great! xoxo- Maggie

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