2017 End of Year
I usually post these to FB, but this got real long... so tumblr gets the unedited version.
What is there to say about 2017?
Many are saying it won’t be missed, that it was a hard year, that it was a bad year. And I suppose all that is true. Except, that I have long believed that discomfort is where we grow. Not everyone does, not every situation is ideal. Discomfort can range from feeling stagnant to a challenged worldview. Some events are too threatening to our personal paradigms and we shut down. Some things feel like they could destroy our sense of who we are, so we disengage and chose to confirm our previous knowledge and brush away the new input. But sometimes, we work through it and we learn new things about ourselves and the people and world around us.
For me, 2017 was a year of growth. Some of it was gentle and self motivated, some of it wasn’t. I was thoroughly lucky and privileged to not have some of the hard seasons others have had. My dad is always pointing out how lucky we are, and was long before privilege was a concept I was wrestling with. I know that I’m well seated as a cis, hetero-presenting, white woman. I can sit back and ignore much of what goes on in the world around me. In 2017 I began to make an effort to listen more to people who don’t look or act like me, to examine my discomfort, to sit with it and learn from it. Â
I had a pretty physically active 2017. I ran the Hot Chocolate and got a PR, after just deciding to walk it on a whim. I did the Foam Fest 5k where we all froze to death, except Scott who held our stuff. That was followed up by another mud/obstacle run with friends, though I preferred the Foam Fest. I’m less about rope climbing and more about inflatables, I guess. I moved to the Woodruff Physical Education Center as my gym, rather than the smaller staff gym closer to the office. In some ways it was a good move, and in others a bit of a hinderance. WPEC is larger, but it’s also further away and I’m more likely to talk myself out of going. But I did meet a goal I set for myself of 3x/month for an entire month to get an annual locker. So seeing the inside of WPEC more often is a definite goal for 2018.
2017 was a year of growth in relationships. I spent time, effort and money on relationships that mean a great deal to me, I rekindled old relationships, I let some relationships fade away, I said goodbyes to two, and I had some go spectacularly wrong. I learned from all of these. Whether I learned the “right” things, only time will tell. I do plan on making time for my relationships in 2018, since it had such a positive effect on 2017. I went on multiple trips with friends this year, Hilton Head, the north GA mountains, Tybee, and Colorado. I buried my remaining grandfather, spent 4th of July on a Jersey beach with my sister, my youngest sister got married, and danced at the Stonewall Inn with my brother. I said goodbye to a vivacious young woman, who lives on in the people who remember her.
I grew a good bit professionally this year. 2016 me would be shocked at some of the things I managed this year. To be honest 2017 me is still surprised I made it through. I’m not sure I can top 2017, and don’t feel the need to. 2018 is the year I settle in to managing a program and employees with a side of studying for the CPLP.
I tried new things this year. I did InCoWriMo (and now have a picture of the Pope on my fridge), I planted a spider plant baby from the AirBnB and it’s still doing well, I did the races I listed above. I started baking again, here in the last month of the year. I went to the Georgia House Rabbit Society fundraiser and hoppy hour. I did a glassblowing class.
A new cat found us, and I wasn’t the one to let her in! Fujiko Mine joined the family and is settling in nicely, even if the older ladycat of the house isn’t overly fond of her. She’s keeping our old man cat spry, and that’s enough for us. We really aren’t sure how old Chuck is, but he is solidly an elderly cat. He’s at least 15, since we got him in 2006 and he might have been 4-5 then. Likely older though, considering how bony he’s gotten in the last 2 years. For both Chuck and Wylie, who are the elder statesmen of the house, I’m always thankful to have made it one more year with them.
As 2018 dawns, I’m thinking about what I want to do in the coming year. At least the first quarter, anyway. I think I might do the Hot Chocolate again this year, since the swag is always good and the chocolate at the finish line is a real motivator. I plan on doing Incowrimo again this year, since I really enjoyed putting together my list and writing letters. Scott and I need to figure out what we want to do about having been married for 10 years. As for later on in the year, I want to take a trip up to Jersey to see family without it being for a wedding or funeral.
