Welcome at last to a Year of the Tiger! My son, Park, and I are both Tigers (1998 and 1974) so of course, I believe that this will be a prosperous year for us. On a basic level, this is the Pygmalion Effect in action. We think it’ll be a great year, and because we think it, it will be.
Sure. Whatever. I will take it.
Because this is the Year 2022, and because Park and I are Tigers, I want to focus a lot on Gratitude. Or rather, Grati-twos. First step in doing this is posting two things a day for which I am grateful. This year, I am going to Ted Lasso the frick out of my life. It’ll be great because 2021 was hard. Really hard. Stupidly hard. BUT it did show me something: I am a lucky Mama.
That’s one goal, then: Be grateful. Love it.
In 2020, I made an overarching goal about not giving myself so completely to people or organizations that barely care to understand me. My heart got broken by the overwhelming wave of selfish people in the world, and a lot of those same big-picture issues replicated into the microcosm of my own hometown and social circles. It was disheartening to be reminded so often that my understanding of humanity was critically flawed. In response, I drew my cloak even tighter. I closed up my heart, which led to a kind of tunnel vision. I saw darkness pin-pricked with flickers of light. I lost sight of the stars.
Somewhat reflexively, I shifted focus to other groups. I joined or remained in communities that are supportive and understanding. They are action-driven and (relatively) drama-free. They are The Mermaid Society SMTX, PFLAG of San Marcos, Sights & Sounds, and Taejinbingo. Shifting focus to these groups helped sift out the ones that didn’t fit me. Going into 2022, these are the ones I want to keep. As Ivan Turgenev says, “We sit in the mud, my friend, and we reach for the stars.” I want to surround myself with people who continue to reach.
Recently, I ran an article in my Lifestyle section about successfully keeping New Year’s resolutions. This is not really an issue for me; I’m a very goals-oriented person and have been told by people I respect that I have ‘willpower like steel balls.’ I love this beyond words. The article said that people are more likely to stick to their goals if they share them with people they respect, and I vibe with that. I post my goals publicly, like a dare. But I also share them with Jason and a few close friends and family members, because their estimation of me does matter. Is that codependent? Uh, maybe. But the article also said that humans thrive on social connection, and if 2021 has taught me anything, it’s that connection with supportive fellow humans is more valuable than gold. It is the most powerful thing in the Universe. As usual, Doctor Who is right.
Here are my tangible goals for 2022
- Health goals.
- Maintain, maintain, maintain.
- I’m up in the air about a Running Goal. Last year I ran a 15k and 1,000 miles total. This year… I’m going to take it a little slower.
- Glasses (cries)
- Uh, therapy. I survived the darkest depression of my adult life this year, thanks to my loving supportive family and friends. But yeah, I need to find a therapist.
- Career goals.
- Track my yearly word count.
- This is inspired by fellow writer friend, Nisaki, who is a fountain of words! I just want to see how much I write in a year. Seems like my kind of fun.
- Release Sea Glass into the wild.
- Last year, I submitted this novel to a contest. She didn’t win, but received beautiful words of praise. I wanted a bigger audience for that story because the message is something the world needs. I also think the world needs more taejin love.
- Record Weathervane for my Dad and my brother
- My Dad’s going blind, so I want him to have this story which he helped shape.
- Maybe a little more freelance?
- Last year I backed off on this because I tend to overcommit myself. I succeeded in pushing back this impulse, so I’m ready to take on a little more.
- Track my yearly word count.
- Personal Goals
- Continue to nurture generosity
- Last year I worked on being more generous. I broke out of the whole traditional gift giving thing and just gave.
- Still working on that plan to visit Linda and Aki, if this whole pandemic thing would cooperate!
- GET MARRIED DAMMIT
- And also have our honeymoon
- See above re: pandemic
- Continue to nurture generosity
- Reading Goals
- Writing Goals
- I have BIG writing plans this year
- It’s Complicated (editing) a taejin slice of life/established romance
- Into the Woods (plotting) a taejin cursed fairy tale
- The Boy Who Painted Stars (drafting) a taejin sci-fi based on Pinocchio
- A whole buncha short one-shots to fill up my card
- I have BIG writing plans this year
Looking forward to ALL of this. Thank you for reading and I hope you all have a wonderful year.
PS This document is 861 words, so I’m already working on that wordcount goal! FTW!