After I graduated from college, I wound up dating a guy who went on to break my heart. One thing I did after this breakup, being that it happened right after the first of the year, was to recap everything I accomplished the prior year and set goals for the new year. I filled a page, folded it and kept it in my wallet. Every so often I'd pull that paper out and check to see how I was doing. The main goal for the year after I got dumped: learn how to ride a horse. I'd always wanted to do it so I called a riding stable and took lessons for two years.
By the time my hubby and I married, I had three of those sheets stuck in my wallet. Unfortunately, my wallet was stolen at the downtown main library one night when I was studying in the genealogy room. After that episode I got out of the habit.
I'm also a calendar saver. I have some wall calendars saved from when I was in grade school. Of course, those were special Hobbit or Lord of the Rings calendars. I've also saved my purse calendars and have a stack of IU alumni ones in my closet.
Yesterday I sat down and transferred all the important info from the 2007 family kitchen calendar to my new 2008 one, picked it up at church last Sunday....one major benefit of being in Indiana for Christmas. Those parishes still do a church calendar...can't beat 'em.
My somewhat rambling point, give me a break, I've only had one cup of coffee this morning, is that we all keep track of stuff. For me, it sometimes becomes a bit of a ritual. It helps me remember where I've been and where I want to go next. It keeps me on track.
We're on the verge of a new year and I may revisit my old habit of keeping a goal sheet in my wallet. I'm going to be 43 this spring. I have a lot that I want to do not just for myself, but for my kids and hubby. Putting it down on paper, writing it out longhand, is one way to 'own' it. Tomorrow while the ham is in the oven, I may do just that.
Happy New Year.
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