New goals for a new year

As I ring in the New Year from Mexico (currently sick and in bed, but hoping to celebrate with my missions team and new Mexican friends later) I am reflecting back on the resolutions I made a year ago and where I want to go from there. As you can see here, my New Years Resolution for 2014 was a big checklist, and as much as I love checklists and goals, this strategy brought more stress than it was worth. I completed all of those goals (except eating healthier... oops), but they were mostly done in a last-minute, catch-up sort of way. This obviously defeated their purpose of starting new habits.

I'm trying to set my 2015 goals in a new way, a way that might still inspire me to move forward but without the guilt of forgetting to keep track or not meeting certain numbers. These goals are general and I can't measure them, but they are things that I feel will help me grow as a person in ways I know I've been lacking this year.

1. Prioritize people. This goal comes from two realizations I have made over the last year. One is that I tend to take advantage of having really great friends, without consciously investing in them. I have become close to some really fantastic people over the years and am very thankful for those who love me so well and count me a part of their circle. That being said, I also know I have nearly always put my homework or other tasks before being with them. Now that many of them live so far away from me, I am realizing more than ever that I need to invest in the people I care about if I want to keep what we had. The other realization is that there are sometimes seasons where I just need to step out of my comfort zone and work my way into relationships that I'm not used to. Being a 5th year at Lawrence has made me realize that, because my primary group of friends has graduated and moved away. I still have many friends here but I am not used to being within their groups. It will take some work but I am determined to start putting in these new roots with new people.
2. Take time for health. Being healthy is not something I do easily when I am busy and stressed out, so I am intentionally lightening my load so that I can pursue what my body need this year. Some particulars are:
• avoiding sugar. Sugar might be the cause of some of the general fatigue and sickly-ness I feel most days, so I'm hoping that limiting it will give me some new energy.
• physical therapy. I've had a really helpful scoliosis physical therapy routine for years now, but I rarely do it despite how much it relieves my back pain. I want to let it become a regular part of my life this year, so that it doesn't feel like such a burden anymore.
• work on flexibility. I wonder if some of the pain I have just comes from not being able to move the way I once was. This year I want to work on increasing my flexibility so that I can hopefully be more comfortable, more often. (feeling like an old lady as I type this.)
3. Write more. Writing - whether in my journal, in letters to friends, or on this blog - is an outlet for me. I'm not good at verbally expressing myself, and writing allows me to slow down my thoughts and process them as I get them out. Writing more will keep life from running away in my busyness as I stay connected with myself and with God.