Ten Days of Reset in the New Year

I’ve been thinking that I need to reset my thoughts in the new year. I want to build up my resiliency and reframe how I’m seeing things. In this new year it’s time for a reset.

January 1st Being aware of my thoughts and reframe
I will be aware what I’m saying to myself. Am I seeing one awful thing and think it’s a permanent state and that nothing is good in the world? I will spend today recognizing when I give myself negative thoughts. I will write a few of them down. Then I will attempt to reframe them. I will find the next better thought. I won’t come up with the complete opposite of the thought as I won’t believe it but instead I will come up with slightly better thought.

January 2nd Learning something new everyday
I will read or listen to something new each day. It might be big like taking an online course or small by keeping a book next the chair I like to sit in.

January 3rd New Morning Routine
Today I’m going to add one new thing to my morning routine to signal to my brain things are changing.

January 4th Finding awe
Change my phone, iPad, computer backgrounds to a photo of something awesome in nature. This change will remind me to looks daily for things that inspire awe whether it’s looking up at the sky to see what the clouds are doing or looking at something close up like the tip of my cat’s nose. I will look for reasons to feel good.

January 5th Find my one daily priority
Each day I’m going to identify the one thing each day that has the biggest priority for me and decide the best hour to do it that day. I learned that during National Novel Writing Month. To write 1,667 words a day I had to make it a daily priority and I had to plan what hour I was able to do it. I want to decide what is essential for me today. Not for anyone else, just for me.

January 6th Better sleep
Today I will start to go to bed at a consistent time. I will figure out when I am at my most sleepiest and set in my mind that I will lie down to sleep within that hour. I’ll make sure I get enough hours of sleep by knowing when I typically wake up. I know that when I’m as well rested as I can, I feel better about everything.

January 7th Decrease negative outside programming
Today I’m going to identify what I am doing that is only there to soothe my mind. If I’m watching a program, or an internet platform that is giving a neutral or negative outcome, I’ll lower my watching time or replace with others that will enhance my life. Which digital platforms make me feel the best after? Is there any I can delete?

January 8th Reevaluate my beliefs
Today I’m going to think of a belief I have that may not be serving me well. I’m going to decide how I can reword that belief so it will have a more positive affect on me.

January 9th Identify one overgeneralization
I’m going to identify one thing that I have been overgeneralizing. What is it that I’ve decided I can’t do or don’t want to do based on a past negative outcomes. Or what I have perceived will be a future negative outcome. Once I’ve identified one habit I have that came out of that way of thinking, I will come up with words that allow for me to think of it in a new way.

January 10th Every evening I will find an inspiring quote, write it on piece of paper and tape it somewhere I will see it the next day. It won’t always be in the same place so I won’t just ignore it. I will consider it to be part of the theme of my new day.

Stand Up Sit Down

In times of pandemic, keeping a physical distance from others as if they are carrying the plague is hard, but then not so hard. Knowing people are dying and suffering is hard, dealing with finding toilet paper is not.

That sentence could have been a good beginning of a new novel, but instead, it’s what so many are experiencing in these times. Needs a little editing, but it would have been a good start.

Truths will come out of this time, and it’s usually in retrospect that we find those truths. Trouble is that for those of us that have to avoid our regular lives is that we have more time than usual to figure things out. Others who are called to essential services won’t have the luxury. Normally in a crisis, everyone has to stand up and respond. This time, so many of us have been called to stand up and then sit down.

As I sit, I’m not able to make busy and ignore truths. Now I have time to think, and while we often may wish for such a time, now that we have it, we really don’t want it. We don’t want to have to think about old truths growing into new truths. It’s messy, and there are too many feelings. We want to action them away. We are discovering truths now, not later.

I find it’s not a bad thing, although I hope that when I’m able to leave my house, I’ve learned more than how to use less toilet paper.

Moment of Enthusiasm Pays Off

In a moment of enthusiasm, I decided I would read 100 books in 2020, all from my to be read pile. I was embarrassed to admit that 100 books were a lot for me and also embarrassed that my to be read pile was that out of control. But I set-up my Goodreads Reading Challenge anyway and announced it to the world.

After one month I should have read 8.33 books. I’ve read 10. I’m amazed I’ve done it, at least for one month. What I’d thought was impossible turned out to be an easy task.

First, I wrote out and categorized my to be read pile into fiction, non-fiction, self-help, books started but not finished, and books on writing. There’s another admission, having so many books on writing. I’ve already read a lot, but a good amount has sneaked their way onto my pile. Also evidently I need a lot of self-help as I’ve amassed quite a collection.

I’ve found that I can read more books by sprinkling in non-fiction, which are a faster read along with the longer fiction selections. Next, I found that by having another book ready to go helps. After ending one book, I start the first chapter of the next right away. I also find books to listen to in the car. These aren’t in my to be read pile, but eventually, with enough trips, I can add another book to the challenge. Also, I belong to two book clubs, and not wanting to show up clueless pushes me to finish those books. 

With eleven more months to go, I can hear Hans Solo in my head:

Luke:

Got ’em! I got ’em!

Han Solo:

Great, kid. Don’t get cocky.

 

 

2019- TGIO

I’m looking forward to New Year’s Day with a “Thank God It’s Over” sentiment much like the December 1st TGIO Party for November’s NaNoWriMo. While I had some fun and happy times in 2019, I can without regret tuck this past year away. I’m welcoming 2020 with thoughts to the new year. 

Best thought- I’m alive. Star Date 2020 seemed like some science fiction future and I feel some accomplishment for that

First resolution. Way less news surfing. It’s good to be informed but not beat myself over the head with it all. Enough said on that.

No berating myself on how I can be better this year. As long as I’m progressing, that’s good.

Appreciate everyone who calls me friend and those who are my family. Not that I haven’t bottom-of-my-heart appreciated friends and family but maybe let them know more often. 

More posting of cat photos. No apologies.

Let my creativity out more often. It’s not frosting to eat after the cake.

Plant more flowers in the spring even if they shrivel and die sometime in the August heat. Allow something beautiful now even if it won’t last forever. 

Shift from worry, fear and guilt to dreaming, inspiration and laughter even it is just one more toe over the line. 

Read more, write more, paint more, wander more, more look into the distance more, more both feet in the water days 

Give thanks for all I have 

Stop making lists of things to do, in my head or on paper. Just be.