New Year’s Resolutions 2019

New Year’s Resolutions 2019

2018 was a tough year for our family. We lost two of our beloved aunts, Bebbers in August, and Avonne (my namesake) shortly and unexpectedly thereafter. We weathered conflict, separation, and change, but we experienced good times, too.
Back in April, Jason bought a ring in our old neighborhood in Seoul. Then, in September, he took me to a precarious suspension bridge on top of a mountain in Canada, where he asked me to marry him. That’s some fantastic, romance-novel amazingness right there. He’s everything in a partner I hoped could be true but didn’t think existed in real life. Count me in; I’m in love!

So today begins a new year. It’s time to reflect on the year before and to make goals for the next. In 2018, I wrote and published a novel titled What If, Maybe? It is, perhaps, the best thing I’ve ever written? I’m not sure, but I know it healed a part of me I didn’t know was broken.

Also, Park and I co-wrote and published a Shakespearean parody titled Much Ado About Something. We laughed. We cried. We fought like teenage sisters. We  learned that co-writing a story is really, really difficult, even if you’re happy with the results.

As for publishing short stories or progress on other novels… Elsewhere remains unfinished, and the handful of short stories I have queued for submission also remain unpublished. Meh, I’ll keep at it. As for new projects, I’m three-quarters through From Now On, part five of Answer. I’m looking to begin posting that one in March. Again, we’ll see.

I achieved my reading goal last year, hitting two over the projected 30 I said I would read. I continued studying Korean, successfully testing out of the first three levels on the Duolingo app. Even more exciting than that, though, was how I was better able to communicate and navigate in South Korea last spring.

We did go to Canada, adding Vancouver and Whale Watching to my List of 100 Things. Also, did I mention we got engaged, and that my fiance is the literal sweetest?!? Yeah, I’m pretty excited about it.

In 2018, I remained healthy and happy. I’m grateful for the strength of our family, and the love we have that binds us all together. As we go into 2019, it’s with an open heart for living our best lives, and being true to each other, as well as ourselves.

Here we go, my goals for 2019:  

1. Career Goal

Finish From Now On.
Submissions – continue to send out those stories.
Continue writing for our community heart, the San Marcos Daily Record.

1. Reading Goal

30 books. I think I can achieve that.

1. Personal Goal

Continue learning Korean through Duolingo, aiming for a minimum of 250 daily lessons.
Learn the lyrics to Epiphany by Kim Seokjin. I’m already working on it.

1. Health Goal

I’ve lost 25 lbs; but I still have ten pounds to go. I’d like lose that before September.
Aim for ten workouts each month.
Continue cooking our Paleo diet.

1. Travel Goal

Same as last year: Go somewhere we’ve never been before. Perhaps a cruise, perhaps a birthday trip to Las Vegas.

Each year,  I have an overall life goal to be more generous. I have been conscientious about donating time and money to organizations that support equality and education. This year, I’ll continue to keep up that effort.

Last year, I did not spend less time with my eyes trained to my phone screen. If anything, I now spend more time on social media. It’s become an outlet for creativity, community, and stress-relief, so… if it continues to enrich my world, and it doesn’t interfere with my relationships, I’ll continue on in moderation. I will try not to be someone who adopts an anti-technology, ‘back-in-my-day’ approach, because our world has changed a great deal since my childhood, and in the way of social media and technology, I can note a number of happy improvements.

Mostly, as always, I hope to pursue the truest, best version of me. I will continue to love and write and dream with all my heart. May this year bring all of us love, peace, understanding, and wisdom. Much love and best wishes to everyone. Happy New Year.