Today being New Year's Eve, people around me are talking about their coming New Year's resolution. I've never made a New Year's resolution. I never understood new year's resolutions. Okay, that's not entirely true. I never understood why at new year's beginning. I know, that seems silly and short-sighted of me because for most, the beginning of a new year offers the opportunity for reflection of the year past and the promise of new direction for the coming year. It's a tradition that has been handed down from the Babylonians who looked to start their year off on the right foot by earning the favour of their Gods via promises made at the turn of the year.
I get it. It's about renewal. Another chance to do something that you've been promising yourself for awhile. (How long has it been for you? Months? Years?) It's an opportunity to reflect on what you have (or not) accomplished off your list of goals and reset and refocus. By making a promise to yourself you might just push ahead to your goals.
But, did you know that "...88% of those who set New Year resolutions fail,despite the fact that 52% of the study's participants were confident of success at the beginning." It actually takes a lot of willpower to stick to big goals (and most New Year's resolutions are big goals). We struggle with that amount of willpower to be used in one sitting. According to those studies, it's best to break down your goals into smaller steps
So why is it that most wait a year to revisit that list? Why is it that it takes a change in the date for us to pause and reflect upon our path and direction it's taking us? Haven't we learned, through our failure rates over the years, that it's too much all at once to set lofty goals once a year?
I ask these questions because inevitably someone asks the question about resolutions on this day.
For me, I've always preferred to revisit my list of goals more often. It also allows for there to be multiple goals instead of one big one. I like to break out my goals into baby steps. Sometimes, as my nearest and dearest may attest to, I break them down into teeny-tiny steps. Some might call that micromanaging or overly attentive to detail, but for me, it's more about feeling like I can accomplish the steps I sets before me. I love to cross things off my list. What a sense of accomplishment that is for me.
Ultimately, I prefer to look upon every day as an opportunity to be a better me. An opportunity to revisit and refocus. It offers the ability to work on baby steps that I gravitate to that day, thus needing less willpower and energy. Every day I'm able to work just a little bit on the bigger picture. Does that mean I am successful daily? Hell no! But I guarantee you, that even with those failed days, I manage to move myself more forward at the end of a month than I would if I set myself a lofty one-off goal at the beginning of the year. For me, I need to pause and reflect often - each moment is a learning opportunity. I've never really formally dissected my beliefs on resolutions, so this has been a good exercise for me.
My resolution then, if push came to shove, is to be better at taking a moment every day to reflect upon the day passed. I want to continue to learn from the day before and to see opportunity in the day ahead of me in what I can do differently today. Sometimes it's to be more efficient. Sometimes it's to be more patient. Sometimes it's to be more kind to myself. Sometimes it's to focus more energy on my health, or offer more love to those in my circle. Some days I'm content to keep moving forward on that path and other days I find ways of slightly altering that path. You get the point.
I resolve to take a more conscious moment every day to reflect upon my path and the direction it's taking me. Every morning when I wake, I will pause and reflect upon the choices ahead of me for the day. Is today going to be a good day? Is today going to be a productive day? Is today going to be a day that I help someone else with their goals?
That's my moment today, recognizing that I have my own tradition of New Year's resolutions. And now, it will be a more formal daily activity. I wonder where that will take me.
One last thought for in my travels of finding the origins of resolutions I also came across this article about other New Year's traditions. Some of these other traditions celebrating the end of one year and the promise of a new one are interesting. Me, I think I may have to eat 12 grapes tonight and think of what I'd like each month to bring to me.
Moments reflection upon popular traditions that you don't follow.
Moments realizing you have your own and formalizing them.
Tuesday, December 31, 2013
Monday, December 30, 2013
Moments D616: Back into the Groove
Today it was the first day back at work. Back into the groove of every day life.
And I loved it. It was easy to slide back into. After a productive day at work, EQ and I went to an early movie and then dinner. We were back early enough to finish watching the end of "Despicable Me2".
Bangarang.
Sometimes it's just that simple to have a lovely moment.
Moments appreciating a typical day in the life.
Moments enjoying the groove of every day.
And I loved it. It was easy to slide back into. After a productive day at work, EQ and I went to an early movie and then dinner. We were back early enough to finish watching the end of "Despicable Me2".
Bangarang.
Sometimes it's just that simple to have a lovely moment.
Moments appreciating a typical day in the life.
Moments enjoying the groove of every day.
Sunday, December 29, 2013
Moments D615: Home
Today EQ & I headed back to California. The flight was uneventful, which is always a good thing! We took a slight detour on the way back home so that we could have lunch at EQ's favourite burger place. It was early for lunch, only 11:30 am, but our bodies were still on EST and at 2:30 pm time we were hungry!
When we finally arrived home, it was early afternoon and we were happily unpacking and settling in when we had MooCow and a couple of others drop by for quick hellos and to catch up on our mutal holidays. It was good to be welcomed home.
But the best moment was when EQ & I finally crawled into bed. It was early by PST standards, but it felt delicious to curl into EQ's arms and attempt to watch "Despicable Me2". I say attempt because within 30 minutes we were both out cold. I woke near the end of the movie to turn off the lights, the TV and tuck us in deeper into the duvet.
Sometimes, it's just nice to be home. In bed. Curled up in a duvet. Falling asleep with the TV on.
Moments enjoying the comforts of home.
Moments realizing what those comforts are.
When we finally arrived home, it was early afternoon and we were happily unpacking and settling in when we had MooCow and a couple of others drop by for quick hellos and to catch up on our mutal holidays. It was good to be welcomed home.
But the best moment was when EQ & I finally crawled into bed. It was early by PST standards, but it felt delicious to curl into EQ's arms and attempt to watch "Despicable Me2". I say attempt because within 30 minutes we were both out cold. I woke near the end of the movie to turn off the lights, the TV and tuck us in deeper into the duvet.
Sometimes, it's just nice to be home. In bed. Curled up in a duvet. Falling asleep with the TV on.
Moments enjoying the comforts of home.
Moments realizing what those comforts are.
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Moments D614: Birds on a Wire
This morning was our last on the ship. Our week of fun in the Caribbean had come to a close.
We rose early and had our final breakfast with Mom & Dad. And before we all knew it, our time was up and we headed in separate directions. Mom and Dad home to Canada, EQ & I off to spend the night in Miami.
At least that was the plan. Until we realized that finding a hotel might be a bit more challenging that we had expected it to be. What we thought would be an easy last minute find, turned out to be an Orange Bowl headache. We actually spent the rest of the morning looking for a hotel room. We stayed on the ship for as long as we could, but that wasn't long enough to search out a hotel room. Miami was sold out of hotel rooms and those left available were outrageously priced.
And so, we had to be flexible. We looked into changing our flight to fly out today. That turned out to be as expensive as the remaining hotel rooms in the city. It's a busy time of year for travellers. Strike one.
We thought we struck lucky when we booked a 5-star hotel on one of those discount sites. Then the first email from the broker site informed us that we would have to wait 24-hours for an actual reservation code. Well. That was helpful. An hour plus later and a phone call to the broker and hotel booked reveals that there is no availability. The hotel is overbooked. Strike two.
EQ complained that travelling with me wasn't the same as travelling without me. Well duh, I suppose it isn't, but I'm no fancy princess. I can roll with it. I actually figured we might end up sleeping at the airport at this point!
Then I started looking a little deeper into the folds of possibilities. Motels. Honestly, they are really a hit or miss thing. Sometimes I've been lucky and found a gem. Other times it was a complete dive. Unfortunately (or in our case fortunately!) not all of them are online with websites and/or listed on the big broker sites which means they don't get the traffic of the bigger hotels. I figured it was worth calling a few.
And so we did. After a lot of apologetic conversations about being booked for the past two months due to the Orange Bowl, we struck gold with a motel very close to little Havana.
It was a stressful morning and afternoon as we fought through the piles (and piles!) of non-available conversations. Arriving at the motel was a relief. EQ called it a "hooker-hotel". It really wasn't too far off that, but at least it was clean and close to the airport. From my perspective it was quaint, and obviously not a high class place. It was also outrageously priced for what they offered, but it under the circumstances, it was a room and a bed for the night. It would certainly do the trick.
And then it rained. It poured actually. I spent the afternoon in this hooker hotel catching up on emails as EQ took a calming bath. It was good to catch up and reconnect with my world back home. It was strange to be disconnected for a week.
And then it was time for our dinner date with EQ's business partner; he offered to take us out for dinner. It was my first time meeting EQ's business partner. What an incredible soul! Not that I'm surprised, knowing that EQ respects and trusts him without falter.
Phew - all this to bring you around to today's moment. It felt necessary to share the high stress of today because today's moment presented the exact opposite of the rest of the day. The moment happened when EQ & I were on our way to dinner with his business partner who lives in the area. I sat in the back seat of the car so that EQ and his partner could catch up - it's been months since they last saw one another. It allowed me to be more focused on the surroundings flying past as I partially listened to their conversation.
The rains had stopped and the clouds had parted. It was dusk as we drove into little Havana to the well known Cuban restaurant for dinner. And there they were:
Tons and tons of black birds sitting on the wires above the street happily chirping and enjoying the last of the day, fresh from the rain. I enjoyed their song for the fleeting moment that I was beneath them.
I smiled and enjoyed this passing moment. As we drove on, I reflected back over our stressful day and how we conquered it. (maybe not in style, but we conquered none-the-less!) Now with the rain behind us, we were out celebrating with a delightful tour of the area and were about to feed ourselves with delightful local Cuban flavours. I found myself greatly enjoying those last moments of our day, much like those black birds sitting and singing high above the street.
Given our roller coaster day, I was reminded that storms will come and go and when they do pass, life around dries and the birds come to sing once again. Much like life. Storms in life will pass and when they do and things settle down, those around you sing once again. My heart was singing once again.
I love when that happens.
Moments pushing through the stressful moments of life.
Moments celebrating the song around you.
We rose early and had our final breakfast with Mom & Dad. And before we all knew it, our time was up and we headed in separate directions. Mom and Dad home to Canada, EQ & I off to spend the night in Miami.
At least that was the plan. Until we realized that finding a hotel might be a bit more challenging that we had expected it to be. What we thought would be an easy last minute find, turned out to be an Orange Bowl headache. We actually spent the rest of the morning looking for a hotel room. We stayed on the ship for as long as we could, but that wasn't long enough to search out a hotel room. Miami was sold out of hotel rooms and those left available were outrageously priced.
And so, we had to be flexible. We looked into changing our flight to fly out today. That turned out to be as expensive as the remaining hotel rooms in the city. It's a busy time of year for travellers. Strike one.
We thought we struck lucky when we booked a 5-star hotel on one of those discount sites. Then the first email from the broker site informed us that we would have to wait 24-hours for an actual reservation code. Well. That was helpful. An hour plus later and a phone call to the broker and hotel booked reveals that there is no availability. The hotel is overbooked. Strike two.
EQ complained that travelling with me wasn't the same as travelling without me. Well duh, I suppose it isn't, but I'm no fancy princess. I can roll with it. I actually figured we might end up sleeping at the airport at this point!
Then I started looking a little deeper into the folds of possibilities. Motels. Honestly, they are really a hit or miss thing. Sometimes I've been lucky and found a gem. Other times it was a complete dive. Unfortunately (or in our case fortunately!) not all of them are online with websites and/or listed on the big broker sites which means they don't get the traffic of the bigger hotels. I figured it was worth calling a few.
And so we did. After a lot of apologetic conversations about being booked for the past two months due to the Orange Bowl, we struck gold with a motel very close to little Havana.
It was a stressful morning and afternoon as we fought through the piles (and piles!) of non-available conversations. Arriving at the motel was a relief. EQ called it a "hooker-hotel". It really wasn't too far off that, but at least it was clean and close to the airport. From my perspective it was quaint, and obviously not a high class place. It was also outrageously priced for what they offered, but it under the circumstances, it was a room and a bed for the night. It would certainly do the trick.
And then it rained. It poured actually. I spent the afternoon in this hooker hotel catching up on emails as EQ took a calming bath. It was good to catch up and reconnect with my world back home. It was strange to be disconnected for a week.
And then it was time for our dinner date with EQ's business partner; he offered to take us out for dinner. It was my first time meeting EQ's business partner. What an incredible soul! Not that I'm surprised, knowing that EQ respects and trusts him without falter.
Phew - all this to bring you around to today's moment. It felt necessary to share the high stress of today because today's moment presented the exact opposite of the rest of the day. The moment happened when EQ & I were on our way to dinner with his business partner who lives in the area. I sat in the back seat of the car so that EQ and his partner could catch up - it's been months since they last saw one another. It allowed me to be more focused on the surroundings flying past as I partially listened to their conversation.
The rains had stopped and the clouds had parted. It was dusk as we drove into little Havana to the well known Cuban restaurant for dinner. And there they were:
Tons and tons of black birds sitting on the wires above the street happily chirping and enjoying the last of the day, fresh from the rain. I enjoyed their song for the fleeting moment that I was beneath them.
I smiled and enjoyed this passing moment. As we drove on, I reflected back over our stressful day and how we conquered it. (maybe not in style, but we conquered none-the-less!) Now with the rain behind us, we were out celebrating with a delightful tour of the area and were about to feed ourselves with delightful local Cuban flavours. I found myself greatly enjoying those last moments of our day, much like those black birds sitting and singing high above the street.
Given our roller coaster day, I was reminded that storms will come and go and when they do pass, life around dries and the birds come to sing once again. Much like life. Storms in life will pass and when they do and things settle down, those around you sing once again. My heart was singing once again.
I love when that happens.
Moments pushing through the stressful moments of life.
Moments celebrating the song around you.
Friday, December 27, 2013
Moments D613: Takes a chillin' and keeps on swimmin'
Okay, the title of today's blog is not nearly as catchy as "...takes a lickin' and keeps on tickin'...", but it gets my point across and it makes me laugh. That counts, right?
Today my parents, EQ and I spent part of the day snorkelling in the waters around Nassau. Only a three hour tour (no joke!) as our day in Nassau was a short one. That didn't stop us from enjoying a cooler, partially cloudy day in the water surrounded by many, many, brightly coloured fish of all shapes and sizes.
Me - I was chilled on the boat ride out to the reef. Absurd. I know! That said, it wasn't as warm as it had been in days past, the sun wasn't hot on our faces because of the coming and going clouds and I was a touch tired and drained feeling this morning. All a good combination to create a slight chilled feeling.
Today my parents, EQ and I spent part of the day snorkelling in the waters around Nassau. Only a three hour tour (no joke!) as our day in Nassau was a short one. That didn't stop us from enjoying a cooler, partially cloudy day in the water surrounded by many, many, brightly coloured fish of all shapes and sizes.
Me - I was chilled on the boat ride out to the reef. Absurd. I know! That said, it wasn't as warm as it had been in days past, the sun wasn't hot on our faces because of the coming and going clouds and I was a touch tired and drained feeling this morning. All a good combination to create a slight chilled feeling.
That chill was not going to stop me from snorkelling today. No way, no how. I was ready for the promised 60 minutes in the water and come hell or high water I was going to enjoy every single second in the water.
I was not disappointed! It was incredible. I honestly wish I could share a snippet of my video with you, but I haven't had a chance to process the videos I took just yet. But boy, oh boy did I have fun! I chased schools of fish. I dove and was up close and personal with different corals in the reef. For awhile, I simply floated in the waves and watched the marine life do their thing below me.
And I had goosebumps the entire time. Yes. That's right, as soon as I hit the water my body exploded into goosebumps. I ignored them. And I was good for about 45 minutes at which point I admitted to EQ that I was cold. He nearly convinced me to get out at that point. Instead, we swam off and enjoyed the reef for another 10 minutes or so.
And then I was really, truly cold through to my bones. My teeth chattered as I swam. I found EQ, and told him it was time, that I needed to get out of the water. We weren't the last to board the boat (darn it all!), but we certainly weren't the first either.
My chattering teeth were with me the entire boat ride home. I was curled up in EQ's arms, in the partial sun/cloud, covered up in two dry (now damp) towels and shivering. I couldn't help but laugh.
I used to do that as a kid all the time. Swim until my teeth started to chatter. I haven't been like that in years. It felt good. I felt alive. And I've made myself a promise. In the next two years, I'm going to learn how to scuba. It's been on my list of things to learn for some time and after the past two snorkelling trips, I'm inspired. It's time to shuffle that up closer to the top of my "to do" list!
Moments ignoring body discomfort and focusing on the joy of nature.
Moments that take you back in time to relive younger days.
Thursday, December 26, 2013
Moments D612: Disappearing
Today was a day at sea. It rained. Personally, I thought it was a good day to rain. A good time to sleep in and time to enjoy the ship inside.
But the energy was off. Something wasn't quite right. Maybe it was the post excitement lull. Maybe it was the rain. Maybe it was boredom. Either way, it was a slow, lazy day. For me, that was perfect after the hubbub of the last few days.
Today's moment came during the afternoon magic show with Chip Romero, a comedic magician. He was good. He was funny. Bonus! (Here's a one of his tricks performed at the evening show.)
But the moment was when he had a young boy join him on stage to do a vanishing egg trick. This young lad, of around 8 or so, was handsomely dressed in a pressed white shirt, black slacks and shiny black shoes. He looked ready for the stage. His personality shone nearly as brightly as his shoe too! Chip's new assistant was fun and interactive with Chip and even took a lot of extra bows when the crowd cheered him on for more.
It made me smile because on the ship there were a lot of misbehaved and/or unsupervised children. It was a delight when we came across a family that was functional and not chaotic. This young lad, most certainly seemed to come from a more positive, structured environment.
Moments shrugging off odd energies and enjoying the change in pace.
Moments enjoying the excitement and engagement of a magician's assistant.
But the energy was off. Something wasn't quite right. Maybe it was the post excitement lull. Maybe it was the rain. Maybe it was boredom. Either way, it was a slow, lazy day. For me, that was perfect after the hubbub of the last few days.
Today's moment came during the afternoon magic show with Chip Romero, a comedic magician. He was good. He was funny. Bonus! (Here's a one of his tricks performed at the evening show.)
But the moment was when he had a young boy join him on stage to do a vanishing egg trick. This young lad, of around 8 or so, was handsomely dressed in a pressed white shirt, black slacks and shiny black shoes. He looked ready for the stage. His personality shone nearly as brightly as his shoe too! Chip's new assistant was fun and interactive with Chip and even took a lot of extra bows when the crowd cheered him on for more.
It made me smile because on the ship there were a lot of misbehaved and/or unsupervised children. It was a delight when we came across a family that was functional and not chaotic. This young lad, most certainly seemed to come from a more positive, structured environment.
Moments shrugging off odd energies and enjoying the change in pace.
Moments enjoying the excitement and engagement of a magician's assistant.
Wednesday, December 25, 2013
Moments D611: New Christmas Traditions
The first moment of my day was realizing that Santa found me in the middle of the ocean overnight! I had a stocking of fun to open first thing. That was followed by shared smiles between EQ and I as I opened his gift to me and he my gift to him. All around that was a tender moment, broken by the flight of nerf darts shooting around our cabin. (Silly, yes. But aren't you supposed to be a little silly Christmas morning?)
But today's big moment was while we were snorkelling. Yes, that's right, today my parents, EQ and I went snorkelling in St. Thomas. Snorkelling on Christmas day. How cool is that?
We saw sea turtles and reefs and lots of brightly coloured fish. We were even visited by a large barracuda as we boarded the boat to head back into town. It was spectacular, truly.
At one point I lifted my mask and snorkel from my face and said to EQ, "...this would be a lovely new family Christmas tradition. I love the idea of snorkelling on Christmas day again!"
It was a great moment. For my family, the holiday has never really been about the date. It's about spending time with people you love. And while I was missing some of my favourite people later today, I was also so very, VERY happy to have spent the day doing something I love (snorkelling) with some of the people I love! What a beautiful combination!
Moments breaking tradition.
Moments realizing that new activity could be a new tradition.
But today's big moment was while we were snorkelling. Yes, that's right, today my parents, EQ and I went snorkelling in St. Thomas. Snorkelling on Christmas day. How cool is that?
At one point I lifted my mask and snorkel from my face and said to EQ, "...this would be a lovely new family Christmas tradition. I love the idea of snorkelling on Christmas day again!"
It was a great moment. For my family, the holiday has never really been about the date. It's about spending time with people you love. And while I was missing some of my favourite people later today, I was also so very, VERY happy to have spent the day doing something I love (snorkelling) with some of the people I love! What a beautiful combination!
Moments breaking tradition.
Moments realizing that new activity could be a new tradition.
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