The beginning of the new year feels silver-blue to me. The last days of December are brown and red, like cinnamon, but some magic happens when the clock ticks over into January, and the sun dawns on a world that feels somehow lighter and strange, both expectant and demanding. Beautiful, like wind over snow. I know a new year is little more than a state of mind, but each January 1st I feel the change in the color of the days. Everything is waking up and wondering what could happen next.
I began 2019 standing in front of the London Eye. My partner, Tim, had come to visit me and we met up with two of his friends from high school who now live in the London area. For two hours, a DJ promised us the best fireworks of our lives – GUARANTEED – and we laughed at his certainty. Quite the build-up. But actually, despite the seeming hyperbole, he wasn’t wrong. The fireworks really were impressive, and so was the message. “London is Open,” repeated in many languages, with greetings for New Year’s Eve revelers from across the globe who gathered right there on the Thames to ring in a new year. I felt a little burst of pride that, for now, this welcoming place is my city. I did it. I live here. I’m a Londoner.
And that feeling of having accomplished a life goal — to live in London — reminded me that things only happen when we set our minds to them.
I haven’t done resolutions in many years, not real, written-down-will-stick-to-them resolutions. But I feel like maybe this is the year. I know there are a lot of memes going around about how we shouldn’t say ‘New Year, New Me,’ because we’re all fabulous already, but even so, I think my life could use a little work. Why not begin now?
Resolutions:
1. Floss
2. Begin a skincare routine
3. Try one new recipe a week from one of my new cookbooks
4. Write 500 words daily (at least!)
5. Care more and less, as needed
6. Discover a new hobby, and/or reconnect with an older one
These are modest, to be sure, but I think I can really make them work.
Re: Resolution #2: I got two lovely cookbooks for Christmas, The Borough Market Cookbook and Classic by Mary Berry, and I’m looking forward to using them (and to finally visiting Borough Market, which I’ve yet to do since I moved here in September).
As to Resolution #4, these 500 words can be in a blog post, journal, fiction project, or —most pressingly, my PhD project. I have a larger goal of completing at least 20,000 words of my dissertation by next December, not counting footnotes and my literature review.
And for Resolution #6, I ordered two small cross-stitch kits from Riverdrift Needle on Etsy, so now I can procrastinate while listening to audiobooks with a purpose, rather than with an addictive iPad game. I’m also considering following the syllabus for an online photography course, just to start looking at the world with new eyes.
And Resolution #1: my dentist will be thrilled that I’m flossing daily. I can’t wait to see her face at my next appointment.