As another day in December draws to a close I come to the startling realization that yet another year is passing. How is it that spring and summer and fall all came and went? When did winter settle in? How is it that we have worn this year long enough that it’s worn out like an old pair of shoes?
The past few years have dragged us along, and it feels like we’ve lived a decade in the span of a few short years, but that decade somehow passed in the blink of an eye. Now we’re nearly three years out from a pandemic which shut down the world, feeling old and young, and like time is slipping through our fingers while it simultaneously runs in circles.
And even if we are afraid of what life holds, how fast it’s racing, and the pressure and demands of everything it asks of us, December always reminds me to pause and remember…
Even if this year is not all that you dreamed- if you did not cling to what was comfortable to create stability in the face of unknowns, but chose instead to make brave and hard choices… then you made this year count.
If you did not force your mind or your ambition into a mold out of fear of what would happen...
If you chose and thought for yourself....
If you asked questions, took risks, and made choices, and lived…
then you made this year count.
Even if this year was full of mistakes and delays and regrets, there is still time to change your mind and adjust your course. Our minds can run in anxious circles trying to figure everything out and wondering if everything will work out in the end.
Do not be afraid of failure or a sudden change of plans. Do not be afraid of still moments where you have to take the time to think things through. Don’t even be afraid of the time spent walking in circles because the way out was unclear.
And definitely don’t be afraid of the questions you are asking yourself now. Time is not flippant. The market has turned and each minute has become priceless. But don't worry about the time lost trying to figure it all out.
It was never time lost, it was always time well spent.
You have all the wisdom of last year to help you as you slide into the next. Be just as brave in 2023 as you were this year, when you jumped off cliffs and grew wings or hit hard bottoms and tumbled down mountainsides. Even the things that broke you, taught you just how strong you were.
If you continue to have the courage to own your choices, to realize what you want, to understand the risk, to hold some things close, and let some things go, then you will have a beautiful year.
Time is not the enemy if you use it to make yourself richer, deeper, expansive, and priceless. I don’t know about you, but I’m looking forward to that precious thing that time is doing as this year closes, and a new year begins.
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