you did good, kid. last year was full of ambitions and you tackled them well. before you can look forward, you need to look back, so let’s review…
OVERWHELMING SUCCESS
don’t let the blackberry become your digital leash.
for the past two months, you lived with your email disconnected from your phone and life is so much better. as much as i know you want it… don’t give into the iphone… it will control you. i’ve seen it happen
ride a bike again.
you successfully and i might even say triumphantly, participated in san francisco’s critical mass. you even began 2009 with a 2hr bike ride… keep it up… oh, and this year, buy yourself a bike. people are kind to let you borrow, but kindness has limits.
run to the ocean at least once a week.
while you were near, you did this well. no ocean nearby now, so i’ll you toss this one for next year.
find beauty.
project365 was an amazing experience in your everyday understanding of ordinary beauty. but the interesting thing about it, is you’ve only just begun. there is endless beauty to be found but don’t be overwhelmed, just take it one day and photo at a time.
make time not to relax, but be refreshed.
i know it was hard, but it was a good choice to put your TV in the closet (literally). it belongs better there and not in the center of your living room. evenings now are full of reading, running and friends… that is refreshing. (note: facebook is not refreshing)
buy a real camera.
okay, so you didn’t buy it, but you have a fancy camera indefinitely on loan until you get your own or it falls apart. now, to save money for one of your own and as well as a fancy lenses to make things memorable.
apply for graduate school.
you did it! i cannot guarantee you’ll get in, but that’s okay. the first step was a big step and i am glad you took it. though a lot is riding on your approval, it’s okay. you have a better idea of who you are and where you’re going because of the process.
make friends with people who have cars.
you are definitely hooked up now and you seem to be the first person people call when they go on vacation. make sure people continue to understand how much you appreciate it and ALWAYS fill their tank up with gas when you’re done. they’ll appreciate that.
commit.
you’re beginning to understand better what to say yes to and when it’s okay to say no… there is still much to learn, but that’s okay. we’re all a work in progress.
HALF-ASSED
read more classics.
seriously… did you even read one classic? you read a lot, i’ll give you that, but nothing of literary significance. how about we try for books over one hundred years this next year… literature, like wine, ages well.
run two half marathons.
you ran one in february (that race was miserable) but the only thing you did for the second was was register. you bailed the day before and passed your ticket onto another (poor kevin!). next year, register for the nike half again but this time, you’re going to train for it and actually run it! okay? okay.
write again.
writing this year was different than before and laced in the stories of your photographs. but what you didn’t do well is journal. that used to be your outlet, your processing grounds, your internal outlet. without it, you’re not fully you. the world needs you to be you so let’s get back to the journals.
be a friend.
although this year was much more about depth in your newly developed friendships, you can be really selfish. your schedule revolves around your needs and your priorities. friends don’t work like that. this year, make room for the story’s of others, pursue their time and let them know of their significance.
choose to love.
you’re getting better but this will always be a life long journey. you often love with expectations, with standards… love doesn’t work like that. love is giving your life away and when you do, you seem to find more of it. practice this again and again.
read the scriptures.
paralleling your lack of journal-ing is your scripture reading…once the source of your inspiration, these words often remain untouched. you let the urgent take over the important. your mornings, once the boiler of your day, have become just another start to the day’s urgent race. the scriptures have the power to transform your soul if you let it… so let the Truth sink in.
find Him here
sometimes you see Him or hear His voice but it’s not like it used to be. He is not sterile and to be quantifiable but moving and alive and real. if you want to breath life out into the world around you, you must first breath in and find His fingerprints in the everyday.
MISERABLY FAILED
cook more.
ha! i think i can count the number of times on my fingers you cooked in your own kitchen this last year. i know it’s small, i know you live on your own, but those aren’t good excuse. PLEASE save your money for graduate school and cook more. your future loan payments would really would appreciate it!
find a piano and play it again.
yeah, that didn’t happen. now doesn’t seem to be the time for this anyway. i’ll let you cross it off the list for next year.
go on dates.
hmmm… that’s a definite no. don’t really know what to tell you about that one. you’ve got some pretty steller girlfriends and drinks/dinner with them seems to be all you can keep up with. perhaps this year someone will be able to slip his way into your busy schedule.
learn to sail.
i give you props for going sailing a couple of times this year but watching someone sail is far from actually learning to sail. eric bought a sailboat and promised to take you out for a weekend… next year, make it happen.
