While I don’t live in the past, I want to look back and reflect on the previous year to learn what I can from it. Ghandi said it best, “Don’t look back. You’re not going that way.” But there’s also a reason there’s still history class! I don’t know about you, but I’d prefer not be the definition of insanity (doing the same thing continuously and expecting a different outcome). It is possible for us to learn from our past while not actually living there.
At my “real job” during staff meeting a few weeks back, someone in leadership who’d been with the company for a significant amount of time referred to the “good ol’ days,” comparing something new with “back then.” What he said was so true because while he often thought back on those times, he would never want to go back. The only reason those are cherished moments is because they’re over.
Over the Christmas holiday this past week, my husband and I (and our furry children – four dogs) took a road trip back home to Michigan. Having lived there 25+ years before moving to Tennessee, I thought I knew what to expect. That going home would give me that warm and fuzzy, I’m-right-at-home-and-don’t-want-to-leave-anytime-soon feeling. We certainly enjoyed our time there, but there was a big part of me that enjoyed it even more than I would have otherwise because I knew I would get to leave and come back to my now home. I also loved having a White Christmas (the first one in three years!), but that’s because I knew I’d get to leave the cold and snow behind eventually (and also because it rained the day after Christmas and melted all the snow!)
Here are some things I learned in 2016…
Don’t do it alone. I need to learn to ask for help. I don’t always have enough humility to give in rather than accomplish something completely on my own. After all, I don’t need to live my life with all that unnecessary stress. I think secretly that’s a small part of why I got married. I’ve never had to fill the car up with gas or even maintain the car in any way, nor have I ever mowed the lawn in my life. So why do I try to hold onto the silly things that someone would be more than happy to help with? Silly stubbornness and pride. I need to work on that.
Laugh more and worry less. It’s easy to get hung up with things and forget that life isn’t meant to be a 24/7 military drill. A good friend of mine gave me a gift today without even knowing it. He posted a home surveillance video. It’s a clip of himself stepping on a rake and passing out. Not only could he laugh at himself, but he shared with all his friends so they could enjoy it too! I don’t think I could do that. But I need to work on that too. It’s so much better to laugh. I’m sure you’ve heard this, but it takes fewer muscles to smile than it does to frown. So stop giving your face a workout. Lighten up!
A little goes a long way. This year, I want to be more intentional. The most recent Christmas card I received was today. It was from one of my younger sisters who lives in Connecticut with her husband and three boys under the age of four, and she’s expecting a little girl in April. They flew down to Florida for Christmas to see my parents, and I knew if they sent a Christmas card at all, that they already had a LOT on their plate. I loved being able to stretch out the holiday by getting their card in the mail today. It was so thoughtful. I want to be more like that. Even if it’s a simple sticky note on my husband’s car window so he can see it before he goes to work. Or hiding a card for a coworker so they’ll find it later. Those are the things that I love to receive, but why don’t I do that more for others? A little thought will make a world a difference to someone else.
Leave the past in the past, but be sure to bring the important things with you this year!