Resolutions…so, I posted my New Year’s Resolutions for 2014 yesterday, and some of the things on that list worry me a bit. (I can’t lie.) In the past, I’ve had a black thumb when it comes to growing things…apparently they need attention. I have also never really run…well, unless someone was chasing me. Why I’ve decided that growing a garden and running a 5k would be fun, I have no idea. I just think they’d be fun and good for me and fun. (Yeah, I know it is in there twice, because you don’t do the stuff that’s good for you unless you think it is fun. Trust me. I’ve tried.) After my post, when I realized that Oh, holy cow, I just posted my resolutions on the internet. Now I’m accountable and stuff! That was when I remembered this…
from Pinterest
I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes.
Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world. You’re doing things you’ve never done before, and more importantly, you’re Doing Something.
So that’s my wish for you, and all of us, and my wish for myself. Make New Mistakes. Make glorious, amazing mistakes. Make mistakes nobody’s ever made before. Don’t freeze, don’t stop, don’t worry that it isn’t good enough, or it isn’t perfect, whatever it is: art, or love, or work or family or life.
Whatever it is you’re scared of doing, Do it.
Make your mistakes, next year and forever. – Neil Gaiman,
Neil Gaiman has written some great New Year’s wishes, but this one is something I try to keep in mind always. I just printed it off to stick on a wall at home. (I need visual reminders…a lot.) Sometimes, I have an issue with needing everything to be perfect, and the thought of not getting something “right” has kept me from doing some things that would probably be a lot of fun. Besides, no one starts out being great at anything…everyone has to start somewhere. Really amazing things have come out of mistakes, so I am always grateful for the reminder to leave behind my fear and go for it. Which brought me to…
It’s a New Year and with it comes a fresh opportunity to shape our world.
So this is my wish, a wish for me as much as it is a wish for you: in the world to come, let us be brave – let us walk into the dark without fear, and step into the unknown with smiles on our faces, even if we’re faking them.
And whatever happens to us, whatever we make, whatever we learn, let us take joy in it. We can find joy in the world if it’s joy we’re looking for, we can take joy in the act of creation.
So that is my wish for you, and for me. Bravery and joy. – Neil Gaiman
What scary thing are you going to attempt in 2014? Maybe I should make a list of things that frighten me, and I wish I had the courage to do anyway. I like lists…I like marking things off my lists even more. What do you think?
I Love Geekology 101 
Gaiman quote, printed, hung on wall.
Awesome! Happy New Year!