Really

It's 11pm and I should be in bed already, but after not posting for so long, I really want to post something. My plan is to talk a bit about new year's and all that it entails, but you never know where I will end up!

The last week or so I have been thinking about what this new year will bring. What do I want it to bring? And more accurately, what will I bring to the new year? "What will the new year bring?" is too passive for where I am in my life.

I used to float by just going where ever the current would take me. Goals were never made because I never understood that I could impact the outcome. The idea that my actions could directly effect the situations in my life wasn't anywhere in my belief system. I never really pursued anything like good grades, success in money management, or weight loss. Being sufficient was good enough for me. Getting by was how I got by.

Now I believe differently. I have seen A) that I am able to make good choices and B) that those good choices do make a difference. In terms of our money problems, we have been making much better choices and it has made a difference. We live beneath our means. We are saving a little money. We have a plan to pay back our mountain of debt. In terms of weight loss, I have made good choices during the past year and it has made a difference. My food situation is a little dicey right now. (I will probably go into that yet again, in another post.) But I have made good choices. I have seen the difference those choices have made. They make me feel so much better mentally and emotionally. They also leave a difference on the scale - over time.

So, anyway, back to new years... I'm not against resolutions per se, but to say "I resolve to do XYZ." doesn't really sit with me well. Accountability with myself is still a bit weak, so resolving in my own mind to do something specific like not eat any more sugar this year will not work.

I have read a lot about not having resolutions but goals for the new year. With the idea that goals are measurable and have firmer parameters around them which make them less loosey-goosey than resolutions. Again, for me right now, to make goals would be similar to making wishes. I really, really, want to lose my last 25 pounds in the next 6 months. But I know in my heart that I am not willing to not eat any more sugar for the year. So to make a goal of losing 25 pounds in 6 months fits the guidelines for goal making, but I know won't work for me.

What I have opted for is something more basic. When it came to me I knew it was the right fit. My plan is to be more mature. To make the effort to do the things that I need to do as a strong, confident woman/wife/mom. I'm sure I have mentioned previously how my last year has brought a new maturity to my life. Now I want to embrace that even more.

Right now, maturity will look a lot like housework. It means cleaning up right after dinner instead of leaving it for the morning, or sweeping the floor for the hundredth time in one day. It means picking something up and putting it where it belongs the first time I see it instead of stepping over it all day and then begrudgingly putting it away at the end of the day. It means being the adult in my relationship with my kids and showing them patience and grace and love instead of frustration and anger. It means keeping up with the tracking of our expenses and writing everything I spend down instead of getting tired and bored of this task. It means choosing to eat properly and healthfully instead of trying to get away with eating junk just because I exercise a lot and don't get sick when I eat a lot of sugary, fatty foods. It means taking the long view and making choices that are best for the future not just right now.

Approaching my year this way will let me have success. Each time I do one of the mature things, I can feel proud of my actions. It doesn't hinge all on one thing or one area of my life.

As I was just writing this, I wondered if I am hiding from hard things. I really do want to lose my last 25 pounds in 6 months. But am I too afraid to seek that out? I know it will be hard to do. I know it will take dedication and commitment. Maybe by taking the "mature" way I have given myself a way out of holding my feet to the fire. I am afraid of failing. I am afraid of telling myself no to the food I want to eat. Yup. I'm afraid all right. I rationalize that being mature also covers food and weight. It does. But it also gives me an out to not really try. It lets me go where ever the current takes me rather than being determined to succeed in this area.

Now what do I do? I really like the maturity angle. I really do think it will work with me. But having happened upon this fear of going for what I really want makes me think that I need to put a greater emphasis on the weight loss. Ugh. I'm face to face with who I really am: someone who hates hard choices, telling myself no and failure. I want (so badly) to let myself off the hook. I want to continue to eat what I want yet I know it was that path that took me to 320 pounds. If I want to go a different way, I will have to get off of that path.

I know it doesn't have to be an either/or with maturity or 25 pounds. I can still do both. It's just that in my head, I need to know that I have a *goal*. I need to decide or else I will just have another out.

I must confess, I did not know my post would go this way. I really had no idea that this was lurking inside of me. Thanks for letting me go through this with you.

Also, I must apologize for my constant use of the word, "really." I haven't counted how many times I used it - but I could have used it more. I edited a few out, if you can imagine!