It's never a good idea to put overmuch emphasis on the things which have happened in the past, other than to figure out what it is that you should've learned from them.
Lots of things happened this past year. Lots of things.
Adam graduated college.
Mary finished her first year of college.
Deb went to Berlin to study.
We traveled to Germany to witness James getting married.
Cheryl took a few trips down to Abilene to help take care of Mom while she was going through chemotherapy. I got to tag along on one trip.
We traveled down to Texas for Christmas.
We sold a few cars.
We started (but did not finish) a front porch remodel.
We hoped to start (but didn't) a backyard deck rebuild.
We replaced a water heater.
We rebuilt a furnace.
Cheryl continued to work with the Cooking Club at the middle school, teaching young kids how to make nutritious meals from scratch.
Mary continued to learn more about baking, and we helped her to test out all those delicious recipes.
A beloved cat died.
Looking back over the things that happened in the great big wide world, they really haven't had that much effect on us, other than raising our blood pressure. Babies were born to the famous and un-famous. People died, some of whom we knew and most of whom we didn't. Facebook continued to be a time-sink. Congress and the President tried our patience. There were "wars and rumors of wars", along with natural disasters and terrorist acts and all kinds of criminal activity.
What did we learn from all those things that happened this year?
Don't hold onto old dreams that aren't going to come true. Some things will just drag you down. (I'm looking at you, old rusty Subarus.)
Jobs don't mean careers, and careers don't mean much of anything these days. If you can't do what you love, what you've been gifted to do, you're always going to wonder, "What if...?". Of course, you still gotta pay the bills, but you're in control of how big those bills get.
Children grow up way too fast, but they're always a joy. Even when you feel like strangling them, they're a joy because they make life fun and interesting and my goodness! they were just learning to walk the other day! how did they get so big and smart and talented?
People (and pets) get old and die, even the entertainers you grew up with -- maybe especially them, because it's been years since you've seen them and then suddenly you see their name in the news and realize their gone, so you go over to YouTube and watch a few hours of their shows or clips, then then get really nostalgic and wonder where the time has gone -- but then you remember that everyone's time is limited and we all need to be making the best of that time. And aren't there some letters I should be writing instead of watching YouTube videos??
We probably spend too much time thinking about the past rather than the present, the things that matter close to home. Can't say as we've making extraordinary progress in keeping in touch with our friends and family like we should; we tend toward the introvertical and like to hide in our rooms behind books, both electronic and paper. We don't eat as healthy as we should (some of us enjoy our wife's and daughter's cooking too well!) and don't exercise nearly enough (especially when the winter weather sets in) and will probably suffer for it in time.
One thing that did strike a strong chord with us this year was the fact that we live too far away from our extended family to be of much use when hard times come along; we need to be nearby. Now that the kids are getting along in their own lives, we're looking into finding a way to remedy that situation. Not sure what that means yet, or how it's going to end up, but we're actively looking for opportunities in other locales which are less than a day's drive from the grandparents in Abilene.
It's a fearful thing to be thinking of making a dramatic change of that nature, but it's a worse thing in my opinion to get too attached to any place just as much as it's a bad thing to get too attached to any thing; just about the time you realize you can't imagine not being there (or it not being there), is the time when you need to move on (or get rid of it). Life isn't static. And things don't open the gates of heaven.
So we're looking at possibilities and praying and hoping that something comes along that'll move us in the right direction.
Lots of things happened this past year. Lots of things.
Adam graduated college.
Mary finished her first year of college.
Deb went to Berlin to study.
We traveled to Germany to witness James getting married.
Cheryl took a few trips down to Abilene to help take care of Mom while she was going through chemotherapy. I got to tag along on one trip.
We traveled down to Texas for Christmas.
We sold a few cars.
We started (but did not finish) a front porch remodel.
We hoped to start (but didn't) a backyard deck rebuild.
We replaced a water heater.
We rebuilt a furnace.
Cheryl continued to work with the Cooking Club at the middle school, teaching young kids how to make nutritious meals from scratch.
Mary continued to learn more about baking, and we helped her to test out all those delicious recipes.
A beloved cat died.
Looking back over the things that happened in the great big wide world, they really haven't had that much effect on us, other than raising our blood pressure. Babies were born to the famous and un-famous. People died, some of whom we knew and most of whom we didn't. Facebook continued to be a time-sink. Congress and the President tried our patience. There were "wars and rumors of wars", along with natural disasters and terrorist acts and all kinds of criminal activity.
What did we learn from all those things that happened this year?
Don't hold onto old dreams that aren't going to come true. Some things will just drag you down. (I'm looking at you, old rusty Subarus.)
Jobs don't mean careers, and careers don't mean much of anything these days. If you can't do what you love, what you've been gifted to do, you're always going to wonder, "What if...?". Of course, you still gotta pay the bills, but you're in control of how big those bills get.
Children grow up way too fast, but they're always a joy. Even when you feel like strangling them, they're a joy because they make life fun and interesting and my goodness! they were just learning to walk the other day! how did they get so big and smart and talented?
People (and pets) get old and die, even the entertainers you grew up with -- maybe especially them, because it's been years since you've seen them and then suddenly you see their name in the news and realize their gone, so you go over to YouTube and watch a few hours of their shows or clips, then then get really nostalgic and wonder where the time has gone -- but then you remember that everyone's time is limited and we all need to be making the best of that time. And aren't there some letters I should be writing instead of watching YouTube videos??
We probably spend too much time thinking about the past rather than the present, the things that matter close to home. Can't say as we've making extraordinary progress in keeping in touch with our friends and family like we should; we tend toward the introvertical and like to hide in our rooms behind books, both electronic and paper. We don't eat as healthy as we should (some of us enjoy our wife's and daughter's cooking too well!) and don't exercise nearly enough (especially when the winter weather sets in) and will probably suffer for it in time.
One thing that did strike a strong chord with us this year was the fact that we live too far away from our extended family to be of much use when hard times come along; we need to be nearby. Now that the kids are getting along in their own lives, we're looking into finding a way to remedy that situation. Not sure what that means yet, or how it's going to end up, but we're actively looking for opportunities in other locales which are less than a day's drive from the grandparents in Abilene.
It's a fearful thing to be thinking of making a dramatic change of that nature, but it's a worse thing in my opinion to get too attached to any place just as much as it's a bad thing to get too attached to any thing; just about the time you realize you can't imagine not being there (or it not being there), is the time when you need to move on (or get rid of it). Life isn't static. And things don't open the gates of heaven.
So we're looking at possibilities and praying and hoping that something comes along that'll move us in the right direction.