As the countdown to the New Year begins, Social Media has been rife with posts about 2019 being the end of the decade and asking people what they have accomplished in the past 10 years.
It’s enough to send you running to the hills filled with self-doubt and disappointment. It’s easy to beat yourself up wondering what have you accomplished in the past 10 years. Are you still carrying that extra weight? Do you have your dream job? Are you madly in love? It’s enough to give you serious anxiety.
Here’s the deal – ignore it. It doesn’t matter what you have or have not accomplished in the past 10 years. Instead, practice gratitude about where you are in your life. I started thinking about this myself after reading Bill Murphy’s post on gratitude in his Understandably newsletter.
Thinking about the past decade with all of the 2009 to 2019 posts has been bittersweet when I contemplate all of the life-altering events from the past decade. The losses and lows have been brutal. I lost both of my parents and my birthfather, two aunts, an uncle, a good friend, and my birthmom’s lovely boyfriend. One of my best friends has cancer, and another family member had cancer too. Being diagnosed with discoid lupus and dealing with side effects and immune-compromising medications has been a challenge – along with having to cover up from the sun like a vampire. There were job changes, storm damage, a car wreck, family stuff, a burglary, and rats in the attic – just to name a few.
I’ve had several instances of just lying on the couch, contemplating my life, and feeling sorry for myself. Then I would focus on what was going well and what made me happy. I made sure to fill my “resiliency bank account” by doing things that gave me joy.
On the joy side of things, I became a Great-Aunt (although my attempts to be called Auntie GaGa has failed – Aunt Janice forever), bought a house I’m slowly renovating, my queen bathroom is fabulous thanks to a wonderful Aunt and Uncle with mad renovation skills, went to a fun family reunion that wasn’t part of a funeral, have a challenging job with the world’s best Millennial Squad, became a temporary mom to a then 20-year-old, relishing how my nieces, nephews and godchildren are thriving and make me super duper proud and amazed with their talent and insight, FINALLY traveled to Ireland, spoke at conferences, discovered new family members and uncovered great family history, went to concerts and the theater, found a great writing group at a writing conference, and spending time with darling friends who have surrounded me with so much love and support that it makes me cry with happiness.
It’s been a helluva ride. With all of it, I am grateful because I’ve discovered strength, resilience, compassion, and love I didn’t know I had.
When December 31 rolls around, I know my biggest accomplishment in the past decade is this: I’m still standing. For that, I am grateful. I know I’m not alone because I stand with the giants in my life. Be happy, my friends.
