A little note before we start: I wrote this blog post before Christmas. But it is just as relevant or even more relevant at the start of a new year.
Also, Happy New Year!
I know I’m supposed to be writing this in the warm belly of the days after Christmas. I usually do.
My post-Christmas lists are post- Christmas.
But I don’t have that luxury. Let’s face it, I now have a job, and I doubt I will be getting the last few days of the year off.
So, it’s better that I do it now (before Christmas ha-ha). And not disappoint anyone who actually looks forwards to knowing what I am up to during the holidays.
Let’s go, shall we?
Also, another way this year’s blog post is going to be different is that I will be writing about what I am not going to be doing, in the new year that is. Not only just the art or music I’ve been consuming to switch over from the holiday spirit to the doggedness and determination to face a new year.
Without much further ado, here’s my post-Christmas list.
1. I’m giving up dwelling on the past
If you read my Year in Review for 2024, which you should definitely read by the way, you will know that 2024 featured me being in a snag because I just didn’t know how to cross over my processes from the way they worked as a student, into my life as a person with an actual job.
And I mean this shows up in the little things like making time to write, to the bigger ones like the concepts that I care enough about to live by. To write about.
There seems to be a new wave in the milieu now regarding who and perhaps even what I am. And I need to update that information. So, I am giving up that shiny self that was my past one, to embrace a hopefully, even shinier and more nuanced one.
2. Choosing indifference
Or, if I’m being honest enough to even whisper the word... mediocrity.
Me and being mediocre do not mix very well. We are all about excellence over here. If possible, overdoing the excellence.
So, I don’t know how I managed to slip into the unlikely slopes of mediocrity.
But I have gone too far to think it was an accident. There are certain actions and thought processes that have kept that slide in motion. And it is time to nip them at the bud.
It is one thing to want to be kinder to yourself, and be restful even while trying to do everything you want to do. It is another thing to just be indifferent about the outcome because you don’t want to ‘hurt yourself’.
3. Following the beaten path.
That Robert Frost poem about the road not taken is a masterpiece.
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
And I think it applies to certain situations where you have to be honest with yourself about which is better.
Following the path that everyone else has laid out for you. Or going ahead to choose the path that is uncertain, but is so much more likely to take you much further than you would dare dream.
Now, I cannot lie, it is a lesson in bravery.
But, how can we be brave when there is nothing to be scared of.
How do we hope in what we see? Hope that is seen is not hope.
4. Being inflexible.
I am a creature of habit.
When I want to achieve anything, I break it down into the smallest bits possible, and form a routine that works with my life.
And that is it.
Most of the time, it works.
But most of the time, it makes me inflexible too.
Inflexible because when that routine doesn’t work for me, I can’t believe it. I would rather believe I am just not being diligent with it, instead of admitting that maybe, just maybe, it is time to try a different method. A different pattern.
And this year has shown me that.
It is time to try a different method, a different pattern going ahead.
Well, let’s not throw the baby out with the bathwater.
As in my usual post-Christmas posts, here’s a list of all of the things I have been enjoying lately
MUSIC
YouTube Music told me that my favorite songs of this year (no judgement, please ha-ha) were
Someday by Mariah Carey (She is my most listened-to artist, the second year in a row)
Smooth Operator by Sade Adu. Big surprise, because I didn't think I liked the song that much but apparently I do.
Running To You by Chike and Simi. It came on my playlist just 3 months ago, and now it's a top song? But the song blends nostalgia and a very current sound so seamlessly
Just When I Thought by Jacob Banks. Specifically, the live album version. That electric guitar does something cosmic to my ears.
Oceans by Hillsong. The fact that a gospel song stayed on my constant playlist this year is a gift
Also... no Lorde song? My low-key favorite artist. Wow.
What a year!
FOR BOOKS
Just off the top of my head, my favorite reads were
The Bible. I am this close to completing a 365 day Bible plan. I'm really excited to be able to say that I have read all the books in the Bible at least once in my life-time. And I want to make sure that it's not just once.
Tomorrow died Yesterday by Chimeka Garricks.I don't need to say too much, I already wrote a pretty deatailed review of why I loved this book so much!
Pleasantview by Celeste Mohammed. I found her short story online and just had to read more of her work!
Those of course are my top 3.
There are other books I read which I found to be riveting.
That's the list!
I really hope you enjoyed some of my practical advice, and some of my faves from the books and music section!
I wish us all a prosperous and peaceful New Year.
Amen.
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