Let the Living Begin!

It’s 2017, and while the year is young, it doesn’t feel “new” anymore.  That shiny, untarnished thing we welcomed is now well broken in and we’re the same people we were in December.  And you know, that’s just fine.  Of course we’re all working on new habits and taming old ones, and I’m certain that when 2018 rolls around (much sooner than I think it will) we will be better people.  But we are who we are, and there’s nothing magical about January 1st.

I well remember the first real dent we put in our hardwood floor after building our home.  My son ran into a cabinet that held a large platter and it went flying to the floor.  The boy and the platter were fine but the floor was definitely different.  Broken in.  We shrugged and said “let the living begin!”

I guess that’s how I feel about 2017 right now.  Already we’ve logged some pretty great memories and some hilarious mistakes and plenty of worries.  It’s going to last 12 months just like all the other years do.  We’re trying but imperfect.  So let the living begin!


I have a tendency to feel overwhelmed by a blank canvas.  It’s blank and boring but it’s also perfect, no mistakes in it.  I think I felt that way as December drew to a close and I felt like I had to set the perfect goals, and set them in the right way and with the right intent and….   it never really happened.  Things slow down during the holidays but with ten of us in the house life is always flowing faster than I can swim and so I started the year behind.  As usual.

But THIS is what it’s all about!  Day to day life, lived happily and with the best effort we can summon, is the whole point.  Would I wish for the flower to stay forever a bud to avoid the risk of an imperfect petal? Life has to bloom just like flowers do, and bring the beauty as well as the dirt.

The longer I live the more aware I become of all the things that could have happened, but haven’t.  It’s become a second gratitude list, the backside of counting my blessings.  We’ve had our challenges, to be sure, but there are so many challenges we haven’t had.  My heart is full of gratitude for the chance to live this particular life, the one that was hand picked just for ME.

The living of 2017 is well underway here, and I hope it’s the same for you!

Love, Jennifer