2022 was a good year for me. I can say that at this time, since in the spirit of this blog, which is supposed to focus on health and happiness, I had my yearly basic blood tests and passed with flying colors.
I was at the local big box bookstore, checking out their post Christmas sales, not that I rush to buy anything, as I get most of my books from the libraries. No, I go there mainly to look at the crowds and the noise and hustle-bustle and maybe get a nice cup of coffee and sit and leaf through some magazines.
There are five things people can do which can lead to increased life-span by approximately 8-10 years: good diet, healthy weight, daily exercise, no smoking, mild drinking.
This was bolded out in one of the articles of a health magazine I perused, the whole article was on the latest scientific developments in the field of increasing the lifespan of humankind.
I am 3 out of 5 here: I don’t smoke or drink and I exercise, if you can call my strolling pace, exercise, at least 5 days a week.
It’s the diet and weight I have trouble with. My BMI is in the overweight range and I do have a sweet tooth. I am working on it, have been for the last 20?30? years or so, I am hopeful one day I will be victorious.
My word of the year-WOTY-was Move. I think it motivated me a bit to do more instead of just thinking about it. But as I look back, most of the activities I did were unplanned, not on my list or radar, and even though I enjoyed them, there is a sense of incompletion. A sense that I did not achieve all I had set out to and therefore, I am not using my time optimally. Mind you, I am not talking about any professional goals here, just some life experiences I want to have.
Because this last year I did not do much of gardening or blogging. I did not sketch or paint. I have a sneaky feeling that I just did not want to work at these things, all these require brain and muscle power. Instead it was easier for me to do the mindless task of making a 1000 cranes or a puzzle.
So where did the time go?
“Most time is wasted, not in hours, but in minutes. A bucket with a small hole in the bottom gets just as empty as a bucket that is deliberately kicked over.”- Paul J. Meyer
Then there is the line my daughters use each time I tell them about wasting time watching t.v or playing games on my phone:
“The time you enjoy wasting, is not wasted time” John Lennon
With apologies to John Lennon, I can spend my life sitting on the couch, watching other peoples efforts on the big screen, or playing games on the small screen, which others have worked hard to produce. But that would not be a life lived.
I realize that this is the best period of my life: my children are self sufficient, my parents are independent, my husband loves his job, I am healthy in spite of the weight.
Of course there is a consistent tiny niggle that one little event could topple this carefully constructed structure, but I try to stay in the present.
As I am moving toward retirement-I am working only two days a week now-I am realizing that if I don’t plan my days or have a set routine, I am in danger of getting bored, depressed, and unduly interested in other peoples lives, something my daughters would definitely not appreciate.
Instead of retirement, I could do as Serena does, evolve. That would require a lot of introspection. Something I will think over the next year. To be followed in 2024.
For next year however, I want to do more of the activities with intention. And attention. For that I have to have a plan in place and follow it.
So Word of the Year is: Intention. To be followed by Action.
Even when I am watching Netflix, it has to be a movie of my choosing, and not something I have to watch because what else can I do post dinner.
My intention is to focus on my health-physical, mental and emotional. I want to build some tiny daily habits which together will lead me to live my best life.
Years ago, on a Sunday morning, I woke up feeling bored and blah and I happened to listen to part of a sermon by Joel Osteen. He said, and I will try to be as true to his words as I remember, that the routine, boring days are the ones when we should make an effort to do good so that we can be prepared for the exciting times.
This is a big one for me. I fall off the good habits wagon when I am bored with it and then am unprepared for the exciting times.
For e.g., if I don’t follow my plan of being healthy by lifting weights and walking regularly, when I do get the opportunity to travel, I might not enjoy it because I won’t have the endurance required for sightseeing.
Or if I don’t plant the seeds in time, I end up missing the season for growing the flowers that I love.
The road to hell is paved with good intentions.
It can mean that there is no value in planning to do good if you don’t actually do it.
So here’s to good intentions followed by appropriate actions in 2023.
Do you have a WOTY? or any resolutions/aims/goals/plans for the new year? Share in the comment section please.
