2011

2011. It was an interesting twelve months. I turned 21(!), adjusted to a whole new diet, took my first professional social work course, passed biology, rode the Harry Potter rollercoasters at Universal Studios, went to my parents’ hometown of Midland, Michigan for the first time in years(kind of like a second home to me with most of my relatives living there), got carded for an R rated movie for the first time (I didn’t get carded when I was 15 and there are times I don’t get carded for drinking, I was shocked to get carded for a movie at 21), asked for random roommates and lucked out with fabulous ones, got to have a car at school, met new friends, held my cousin’s baby and let him play with my hair and grab my nose, started two new jobs that I really enjoy, took ballroom dancing lessons, dyed my hair a lighter brown, learned how to read ingredient lists in a whole new way, and got halfway through my college career. The reason that that was the longest run on sentence ever that can never legally be one sentence is because in some ways I feel that was how my year was. My Thursdays last semester were long days, running between classes, work, meetings, and tutoring from 8:45 in the morning until 8 at night. My whole year seems to be a blur of classes, work, medical tests, and always being busy. I felt like I was on a rollercoaster in some ways, with good things and bad things always happening. It was nice in some ways, always staying busy and having things to do. However, I didn’t have much time to stop and reflect. But now, with the boredom and freedom of interim, I do. I realize I learned how to seek the support of friends and family when I needed it, and the relationships that I was able to strengthen. I realized how good I have things in some ways. Although it really sucked having health problems, I thought of people who are in worse health and of people that cannot afford health care. In some ways my eyes were opened to new issues. Like the access to health insurance in this country. Or how the FDA regulations for reporting ingredients of products for people with food allergies really isn’t as good as it should be. I learned about things I never thought I would have before. I learned it always helps to think positive. When bad things happen you can choose to sit there and be upset, or you can choose not to. I have learned to become more conscious of my body and how I’m feeling in the past year. Beyond knowing not to eat gluten, I have learned how certain foods affect my stomach and I’m starting to better learn what to eat when.
I have never been much on new year’s resolutions, but there are a couple of things I do want to accomplish this year. For one thing, my eating habits have gotten out of whack with a new restrictive diet and living in the dorms. It got to the point last semester that I rarely ate breakfast or lunch, and if I did it wasn’t healthy. This semester I’m going to try to get up five minutes earlier everyday and grab a rice cake or applesauce for breakfast, and then make it a point to go back to my room for lunch for a frozen dinner. If I don’t have time to go back to my room, I will make it a point to pack a healthy snack like nuts.
Also, last year I discovered my self confidence holds me back and I want to fix that. I want to try new things and not let the fear of failure get in my way.
And spiritually, I think I lapsed a lot last year. I’m not big on organized religion and sometimes I feel church has more hindered than helped my relationship with God. However, it did provide me with more accountability and a set time to spend with God. I rarely went to church last year, and as the year wore on I went less and less. I have a couple of churches I enjoy in the Palos area, but my family and I have basically lost connection with the church I grew up in. since I don’t go there anymore, I want to try to find a church at home that I enjoy going to on breaks. This semester, I want to go make sure to go to outcry every week and also go to Sunday night worship each week. More importantly, I want to make sure I set aside time every Saturday to read the Bible and pray. And perhaps I should find a devotional book to work through as well.
Every year, I seem to spend more time reflecting on last year then making goals for the next year. I like to look at what I have experienced and how I have grown on a person