At the end of every year and beginning of the next I find myself in deep reflection evaluating the past year, and 2023 was no different. I spent the end of 2023 thinking about how tough the year had been and what I was looking forward to in the New Year.  Sometimes it just feels good to have a fresh start, and after 2023 I was ready to refocus and work on some personal and professional goals.

2024 had other plans.  You know that saying, “When you make plans, God laughs.”?  Well, that’s how I feel about the start of 2024. It has not been an easy start to the year, but I’m hopeful that it will get better as the months pass.

Below is a bit of reflection on 2023 and the start of 2024, some goals I have for the new year, and what’s going on right now.

Reflecting on 2023

(Trigger warning: grief.)

2023 was one of the most difficult years I’ve ever faced. (Technically it started at the very end of 2022.) I found out toward the end of 2022 that my dad had his first of several strokes. 2023 was like a nightmare I couldn’t wake up from. I spent the first half of 2023 watching my dad fade away. He fought a good fight, but ultimately he succumbed to the affects of his strokes in July 2023.

I spent most of the last half of 2023 escaping into work and Minecraft so I could avoid thinking and feeling and all of the gunk that grief brings with it. If I’m being completely honest, 2023 is a year I’d just like to pretend never happened.

Because 2023 was so difficult, my end of the year reflection was more emotional than normal, but I knew it was time to work through some of my feelings.  I thought about my dad a lot at the end of 2023, but I also thought about my family, my career, my health, and my goals.  I tried to make specific goals in several areas of my life and plan out the first part of 2024, but things don’t always go as planned.

January – Ugh.

Both my husband and I got sick right after Christmas and we were sick almost the entire month of January. (Our adult and teen sons were also sick, but recovered much more quickly that we did.)  It’s like 2024 was trying to compete with 2023 and it “came in like a wrecking ball…”. (Sorry if that song is now stuck in your head.  ooops!)

There were 3 different times we started feeling better and then we immediately got knocked back down again.  It was horrible and I basically lost an entire month.  The whole Month of January is just a blur.  All those good intentions, goals, and plans got put on the backburner.  I could barely work and do the minimum required to survive.

The end of January also brought some career-related challenges, but I’m working through them at the moment and will share more on that later.

February – Getting back on track. 

February has been interesting.  I have spent it dealing with the aforementioned career-related challenges and am working on the goals I set for myself at the end of the year.  There’s no “New Year, New Me” nonsense going on because I know myself better than that, but I did set some goals and identify some areas in my life I’d like to work on during 2024.  I know from experience that real, lasting change  happens over time, not all at once, so that is the approach I’m taking. It’s cliché, but slow and steady wins the race.

It’s taken me most of the month to finalize a plan of action, but as I sit here with a little over a week left in the month, I feel good about where I’m at, where I’m going, and my overall plan. It wasn’t easy to get to this place. There has been self-doubt, over-thinking, and fear, but I’ve worked through a lot of that and will continue to do so.  I’m not letting any of it stop me and I’m focusing on action going forward.

Looking Ahead- Goals, plans, actions.

As I stated above, I have a plan and I’m going to concentrate on taking action going forward.  The main goal I have for myself for the year is to take consistent action to improve my life in a few key areas:

• Faith – I have had a couple tough years and reconnecting with God has helped me, especially dealing with the loss of my Dad.  I want to continue to explore that connection.
• Health – In September of 2023 I started Keto (low carb).  Within a week or so I felt great.  I did well for a while, but I have struggled off and on over the last couple of months.  I am back on track now and feeling really good again.  I’ve lost 30 lbs since September 2023. Part of that was up and down, but currently I am 30 lbs down from my heaviest weight. I will continue to eat on plan, monitor my weight, drink enough water, and exercise going forward.
• Relationships – I want to connect with those I care about more often.
• Career – I have high hopes for the year ahead where my career development is concerned.  I will write more about this throughout the year.
• Finances – Hello Budget.  With the price of everything skyrocketing, I want to take a closer look at my budget and finances.

Final Thoughts

2024 has started off a little bumpy, but I’m ending February on a good note.  I look forward to the future and I have a renewed sense of purpose and energy.  How has 2024 been for you so far?