New Year's Resolutions for 2015
this is a particularly tough new year’s for me–I’m dealing with a lot and haven’t been in a great place lately (whereas the majority of 2014 was positive and low-stress). turning over the year in the middle of winter never makes sense to me, I’ve been talking to my sister about how it’s arbitrary and how the forced optimism doesn’t make sense when everyone’s cold and sad (better to start the year in early spring, right!?) I haven’t felt in a good place to write resolutions until this evening (I tried earlier, failed, then I drank some st johns wort tea and it worked), and now I’m feeling pretty good about how they’ve turned out, and how this year it’s more of a conversation and reminders. I hope i can keep feeling good about carrying these out.
get better at saying “behind” “coming around” “hot” “sharp” etc etc. Be vocal and assertive generally in the kitchen. Move with purpose. Be aware of my body.
Get better at mise en place. get better at planning ahead in general.
knife skills: take better care of knives themselves (use steel more) focus more on making good cuts. take pride in simple cutting tasks
focus more in general and take pride in doing things right and well in general.
learning (class): Read and underline and understand textbook, preferably before we cover chapters in class. go over again. take notes on things in order to remember them best.
learning (general): Do outside, extra reading on what we’re covering in class as well as whatever i’m interested in
School: Keep uniform neat and clean. Keep pencils, pens, notebook, folder, etc in good shape and remember to bring everything.
Get enough sleep! eat enough and eat balanced foods.
lift things correctly. stretch daily.
Be vocal, friendly, and social.
stay on chefs’ good sides (while still arguing in a friendly way when I’m right and it’s important). make use of them in terms of finding jobs and getting recommendations.
Taste fully, entirely, and remain focused. Work on articulating what flavors, textures, etc are like, and remembering/recalling them.
try new foods. try new techniques.
for self and relationships
work on taking care of myself emotionally and physically (see: the rest of these).
be a better friend, partner, relative: listen actively. be interested in others’ lives. offer support where I am able. spend good time with people. Appreciate people for who and what they are.
Reach out to others when I need support
the only thing i believe in having “faith” in is that unpleasant or unhappy feelings do pass, spring or morning or the sun will come again. the full spectrum of emotions are part of life and it’s good and helpful to experience them all.
Feel your feelings. express them. but try to do it in a way that doesn’t hurt other people.
take responsibility for your words and actions. take responsibility for your emotions. do not try to make needing support from others mean making others responsible for your emotions.
practice self-soothing/self-care activities.
be gentle with yourself. be forgiving. be kind. be understanding and validating. you are not bad. you are not weak. you are not crazy. you are good. you are strong. you are kind. you have good morals. you are compassionate and caring. you are honest. you are respectful. you are self-aware. you are in control. you can make mistakes. you can have feelings. you can show feelings. sometimes you have to mess things up a little, and you can make them better.
processing takes time. be patient.
be motivated by love: love for others, love for life, love for yourself.
forgive yourself, and forgive those who are trying to be kind and good.
take care of your physical body: eat enough, eat well, sleep enough, sleep well, bike, stretch daily and focus on it, bend and lift things correctly, brush/floss/mouthwash daily, calcium supplements, make use of other herbs and remedies.
via all of the above, become more confident, more secure, more grounded, more wise, more stable, and more connected to others.