Welcome 2017
2016 proved to be a daunting and stressful year for many reasons, but as a whole, it was a good year. In planning for this post, it became very clear how blessed I've been this past year. There were many times when the Lord's tender mercies have provided protection, given me strength and enabled me to grow. Before I reveal my goals for 2017, I wanted to recap the highlights from 2016 and the biggest lesson I learned.
Highlights from 2016
I was able to travel to a handful of new destinations: Glacier National Park, State Fair of Texas, Nashville, Tennesee, Jordan, Israel, and Thailand.
I navigated the longest road trip of my life driving with my parents from Dallas to Canada and then onto Denver. Along the way, we saw Mount Rushmore and Glacier National Park and spent some much needed quality time with my mom's family.
I was fortunate enough to see Hamilton twice on Broadway. The first time was with the original cast in March and then again this past December on a trip with my parents and brother. The show was tremendous and I'm completely obsessed with the music.
My parent's celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary and we had our first family reunion. After spending the last couple of years organizing the event, I was thrilled with how smoothly everything came together. I loved spending time with my family and laughing at everyone's stories.
I have continued to grow my leadership skills as a department chair and instructional coach. I also successfully concluded my first year teaching Gifted and Talented Humanities with my co-teacher. We are now almost halfway through year two and although we've had some challenges, it has been a rewarding teaching experience.
Lesson Learned:
If I haven't clearly communicated my expectations with someone then I have no right to blame, be angry, hold grudges or feel hurt by their actions. Therefore, I must be brave enough to address critical issues and communicate with honesty and kindness. Also, if I'm not willing to bring something up--then I must let it go.
Goals for 2017:
I plan to improve my communication skills, most specifically in the realm of critical conversations (see lesson I learned) and my flirting/charisma skills. The events this past year that were the most frustrating were all a result of my inability to properly communicate what I needed/expected.
Although I didn't intend to have my focus in 2016 be my work, that is what happened. Therefore, my second goal is to work on strengthening my personal relationships. This goal has two parts. The first part is to reach out more to my friends/family (letters, phone calls, texting, inviting people over, etc.) The second part is to actively work towards finding a boyfriend. It is very easy for me to be alone, in fact, most of the time I prefer it (one of the side effects of being an introvert). However, life is richer with deep intimate relationships and I don't want to forgo that part of my life anymore. As you can see my communication goal should help with this task as well. So...if you know anyone that's single--let me know!
I would like to visit 5 places I've never seen before. This should be easy because I already have a few trips planned.
My final goal is to read the entire Bible (Old and New sections) this year. I haven't read it from cover to cover since I was in high school--I've mostly focused my scripture study on the Book of Mormon, so it's time to revisit the Bible.
What are your goals for 2017?
