Resolute

     It always takes me awhile to come up with New Years resolutions. Partly because I took a class that taught me how to write goal statements the 'right' way so I keep hearing words like 'measurable', 'observable', and 'feasible' running through my head. Its also partly because I do work really hard to meet the goals I set for myself so I try to make sure I can accomplish them without making myself miserable. And then partly because I get lost daydreaming about another year and all its endless possibilities. All of that is to say that I am still working on my goals for this year but in that process I had a revelation - I am going to turn 25 in this year. 25. One quarter of a century. Guys. Seriously. 

      Now age has never flipped me out because of the getting old part because I don't really feel like I will ever feel very old (at least not in my heart, maybe in my bones, but not my heart). The age thing gets me more because I remember what I imagined 25 looking like as a kid and a teen and a college student honestly. I thought 25-year olds carried briefcases and wore pant suits and tight buns in their hair. But I'm going to be 25 and even though I dress up nearly every day I still feel like my inner child (or maybe my inner tree-hugger) is always seeping through via my wavy, wind-blown hair or my brightly-colored skirts or my flowing scarves. But the point of my rant about turning 25 is that when I was realizing that I was also thinking about how I want to celebrate a little all year by setting goals for having fun before my birthday. It seems like the goals people set for the new year are generally things that will make them better but not necessarily things they want to do, which is why so many people just don't do them. So I decided that in addition to my year's goals I also would build a "25 things I want to do before I'm 25" list. Now don't be getting too excited, my list does not have big things on it like 'backpack through Europe before April'. Instead I put little things on the list, but they had to be things for just me, things that would make me happy and feed my soul in unique ways, ways that I would not take time for unless forced to by a list. The list includes (but is not limited to) these items: 

- Watch Casablanca with Adam 

- Listen to a new band 

- Buy flowers 

- Eat an entire Ben & Jerry's pint 

- Write a poem 

- Buy a full-priced item from Anthropologie 

   I really am so excited. We talk about self-care sooooo much in my classes and I think so often I do not pay much attention because I've heard it before and I've never been good at it. But when you put it like this, in a list of tiny but beautiful things you can do for yourself in the next four months before you turn a quarter of a century old, well then its a different story. It makes me giddy to think about walking into a store and buying my first Ben & Jerry's and eating the entirety of it, self-control of no concern to me. Isn't that ridiculous? I know it is, but I don't care. I'm taking baby steps and it feels good. You should take care of yourself. Especially when you are turning a quarter-century old.