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It may be February 1st but it is only just now beginning to feel like the new year for me... I guess we were on "wedding time" for a while. Last weekend we had our Christmas gift exchange with the Newman side. I have not yet written or mailed a Christmas letter...which, if it were to happen, would likely be for the New Year at this point.
I'm absolutely okay with starting 2024 already behind schedule. (har, har)
Nevertheless, here I am.
Behind schedule.
But before I truly begin this new year... I always like to take once last, lingering glance back at what is being left behind.
(To look at the original 2023 Resolutions post, go here.)
I feel pretty proud of last year's efforts. While some of the things I had hoped to accomplish fell entirely off my radar (like reading Paradise Lost, for example), other things I never anticipated being ON my radar (i.e. putting on a wedding) were accomplished.
It really, REALLY helped me to have a daily/monthly checklist to check off... it helped me not only to keep my goals on the forefront of my mind each day (thus helping me to actually accomplish them), but it also helped me to not lose heart when I didn't feel like I was progressing or improving quickly enough.
Seeing all the checkmarks made me feel like there was real progress being made, even when I didn't make every goal, every time. (And I didn't... see the barren wastelands of the end of November and the end of December.)
An added perk, I've got to say... it is awfully fun to look back on all those little checkmarks now!
I think I will be implementing the check-off system from now on. That was the single-biggest reason I had as much success as I did.
BIG FAILS
~ NOT reading Paradise Lost
~ NOT repairing chicken coop or getting more chickens
~ NOT finishing the entire Literary Life Reading Challenge
~ NOT writing creatively for 10 minutes a day
~ NOT writing long letters to friends (I did write correspondences but they were usually short cards of condolences, gratitude, encouragement or congratulations... not those lovely, long letters I love to write/receive.)
BIG WINS
~ hosted a Community Psalm Sing
~ hosted Corynn's wedding
~ had Matt's parents over for supper once a week the entire year
~ new roof on house
~ accomplished monthly projects
~ Christmas present buying throughout the year (what a blessing this was to me as December's TIME and BUDGET was entirely devoted to Corynn's wedding)
~ homegrown beef (and more recently pork!) in freezers
~ printing photos from '22 and '23 (though now I have a bunch of photos that need to be put in albums)
~ deleting photos from computer
~ and, of course, every single one of those checkmarks above!
(I'll be sharing what I hope to accomplish in 2024 tomorrow.)
6 comments:
Still got a lot done whats the big thing for next year
You did great, Rebecca. I’m so glad the checklists are working for you—great idea.
How are you feeling, physically? I’d love to hear how your health has benefitted from the vitamins/exercise, etc. I absolutely adore how you took pictures of your checklists with the flowers—so beautiful, especially the pansies took my breath away. If you had “be creative” on the checklist, you would’ve nailed that part! :) Monica
Debbie- one goal just for you is to finally get some pictures of Andrew and his cabin!
Monica- I'll write you all about it in my letter to you! You ABSOLUTELY made my day when I received a nice juicy letter in the mail from you. Thank you so much! It was just SO GOOD to hear from you!
What a wonderful year 2023 was, in spite of the struggles. You did so well with your goals! I'm excited to see what your goals are for this new year! <3
I was just sitting down to finally put my goals on paper. I have some lofty goals in some areas. God willing, at least some of them will be accomplished.
Leah- I'd love to hear some of them!
Michelangelo supposedly said: "The greatest danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it."
This is such a fantastic system! Well done on all that you accomplished!
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