2012 - Start As You Mean To Go On

I greatly dislike the term 'New Year's Resolutions.' 

Why?  The fact of the matter is that in our modern-day culture that term is generally considered a joke.  Grand promises for sweeping change are thought up as we say good-bye to the old year and hello to the new...only to be broken within days or weeks.  Certainly by the end of February (and that's charitable) all of our good intentions are out the window.  The joke is that everyone knows going into it exactly what's going to happen.  So really, are any of those resolutions truly meant?

Ridiculous.

So instead of making resolutions, I propose to follow the advice of the lovely Breda Dayne of Cast On and:

"Start As You Mean To Go On."

I love that phrase.  It's an action, not a wish.  It gives forward movement while also helping to set into stone the ideas you may have for the way you want to live.  In big ways or small, it says that you just have to get moving.

This is a bit of how I began 2012 as I mean to go on:

1. I spent an hour writing in my journal....something I haven't done in probably six months.  That hour included a conversation between my somewhat difficult muse and myself.  (The Green Woman thinks I was boring last year.)
2. I went to church. 
3. The girls and I worked on puzzles together....focused time they don't always get from me.
4. I cleaned up after myself, and spent some time organizing my stuff.
5. During a surprise block of free time in the afternoon, I went to Starbucks with handspun yarn, a pile of books and a notebook and I started to design a shawl all by myself.
6. I forgave myself for something.
7. I spent time with my husband.
8. I set up a space in the house for some yoga, digging my props out of storage.
9. I fixed a mistake in my knitting.
10. I refused to start something new until I could finish several old projects.

So there you have it, 10 small steps to help create the life that I want for myself.  10 small ways to start as I truly mean to go on in 2012.