A Proclamation.

Historically, I hate this time of year.  Yeah, it’s the bah-humbug, I’m a jerk, how dare you sneer at the magic of Christmas kind of thing to say, but I really do.  

It’s not that I hate Christmas, per se.  Really, nobody HATES Christmas, except maybe Satan.  More specifically, it’s that stretch of time between Christmas and New Year’s Day, when I get all reflective over my year.  Of course, being Kat the Overachiever, I start “building up” for that week somewhere around December 1^st.  Anyhow, I think of the dreams I had on January 1^st, the expectations I had for how the next 364 days would unfold, and then I look at the reality of what actually transpired.  And then I usually drink.

This year’s review will still have its share of suckiness.  But you know what, dearest reader?  It will also have its share of awesomeness.  More so, in fact, than any year in recent memory.   Did it go like I thought it would?  Hell, no.  If you had any idea what I EXPECTED to be doing with my life in December 2012, you would probably have a stroke or a cardiac incident…especially if you had checked in with me in, oh, March or April.  Guess what, my friends.  Things change.  Life happens.  The proverbial shit hits the proverbial fan.  The best laid plans blow up in your face. People disappoint you.  People give you amazing, unexpected blessings.  People get cancer.  People you didn’t even know really liked you in the first place give you an affirmation when you really need it.  Hearts get crushed, reality sucks the life out of a dream before it even really has a chance to leave your slumber.  You meet people who you think are really noble, who then turn out to be douchebags.  You write someone off as a douchebag, and they turn out to be your bosom buddy. 

You can roll with it all, learn from it, and even embrace it – or you can let it turn you into a bitter old hag.  I’d rather roll, thank you.  I have several more years before I need to turn into a hag, especially an OLD hag.  In 2012, I parted with most of the items of any monetary value I had left…I moved to a city where I knew exactly 2 people…I got my heart broken.  I also met an miraculous man who I’m pretty sure is the love of my life, found an apartment in an area of town that fits my needs perfectly, and I look better and am healthier than I’ve been in 20 years.  I don’t make much cabbage and my job isn’t exactly going to change the world, but at least I don’t lay awake at night feeling trapped in a career that holds no joy for me anymore.  I got to go to fire museums, fire stations, fire events in 4 different states and write about them for you – and I got to meet some really, really, REALLY awesome, dedicated fire service professionals.  So, all in all, I think we are ending in the black. 

Proclamation time – this year, I will not dread December 31st.  Instead, I will embrace it and start planning my 2013.  I read a post today by Leonie Dawson, online business goddess divine, who has inspired me to come up with a list of 100 things I will do in 2013.  Yes, 100.  And yes, if I have to do it, you have to do it, too.  I will post my list in the very near future and I hope that you will email your list to me. 

Go forth and make it happen.