We read a book recently for history about Benjamin Franklin. Apparently he reached a point in his life where decided he needed to make some personal changes. In order to keep himself accountable, he made a list of his "resolutions" & kept it in his pocket so he could pull it out & read it & remind himself of the man he was striving to be. This idea has inspired my 8 year old son, Nate. Two days ago i found him in our classroom writing this:
He's been carrying it in his pocket & pulling it out & reading it to remind himself of the kind of "man" he wants to be.
I've always thought New Year's Resolutions were kinda overrated. Mostly because i never really stick to any of mine for more than a week or two and neither does anyone else i know. But today (thanks to Nate) i'm captivated by the knowledge that this New Year will bring a new opportunity to reflect on the kind of woman/wife/mom/friend/sister/daughter i want to be and to keep myself accountable to make the necessary changes. Carrying a list in my pocket? Nah. That's highly unlikely. But if i were gonna make a list this is probably what it would look like:
More Sleep/Rest
More FaceTime with Jesus
More Love, Grace, Humility, & Compassion
More Thinking and Listening
More Long Walks with the Dog
More Long Runs with my Ipod
More Laughter, Books, & Time Invested in the 5 Most Important People in my World
Less Exhaustion
Less Electronics & Social Media
Less Personal Judgements, Criticism, & Complaining
Less Talking to & Listening to Other People who Complain
Less Excuses
Less Trying to Capture Moments to Upload to Facebook & Instagram & just LIVING IN the Moments
In a nutshell, I want to spend 2015 sweating, laughing, reading, and on my knees listening & praying rather than being physically, mentally, & emotionally weighed down by things and people that will leave no true, lasting, positive impact on the lives of the people i love. I realize that may seem selfish or even downright mean at times to others who don't understand or who are too self-involved to ask why. But i think this New Year needs to be a new start for a Nichole who is less plugged in to the chaos of the world around her and more plugged in to the beauty of the world within her walls.
Go figure. My 8 year old made me realize that if i really want to impact the world around me, i'd be wise to start with the people closest to my heart. I always knew my kids were amazing...
