A new year is upon us, but I no longer make new year’s resolutions.  Because, like I told my son, I believe people can make a change, a fresh start, at any time. 

And, like I saw from last year, there really is too much I don’t have any control of.  Last year, I got sick within the first couple weeks of the new year — a mystery illness that was just the beginning of a very health-challenging year.

So this year, I’m trying to stay flexible, or as my son likes to say, “go with the flow.”  Because, really, no one knows from one day to the next.

In lieu of a resolution, I am designating a focus for the year.  That focus is my writing — the personal writing I do here on this blog, as well as the personal writing I send out into the world.  (I’m very proud that one of my personal essays will be included in an anthology titled Chronic Illness Truths that will be published later this year).

Barbara Abercrombie, an author and fantastic instructor in the UCLA Extension Writing Program explains it well: 

“… we all go through strange and painful periods in our lives and one of the reasons we read is to find out how other people, real or fictional, navigate the hard times.”
(This quote is taken from Barbara’s book A Year of Writing Dangerously).

That is one of the reasons I read.  And why I write.

We are days away from a New Year.  My son is quite excited about 2018, because it’ll be the year he enters “double digits.”

I’m trying not to rush things; I’m trying to savor the here and now.  And on that note, I’d like to share my newest publication with you.  “In the Middle” is my personal essay about middle age — my own as well as Ryan being in the middle of his childhood. (You can click here to read it at Parent.co). 

I’d also like to take this opportunity to thank you for reading my work each week.  I appreciate your support. 

May the year ahead bring us all love, peace, and good health!

Our Christmas tree is decorated, and last night we lit the menorah for the last time this year.  My son, Ryan, is super-excited about Christmas, and not only for the presents.  In fact, the other day when I asked him what he was most excited about, Ryan answered, “Giving everyone their gifts.” 

Unlike Ryan, I’m not expecting to wake up Christmas morning with packages under the tree.  Though if I had the chance to ask for a gift, I have a big request.  It’s not easily given, not found in a store, and can’t be ordered from Amazon.

The gift I would most like is good health for my family.  This year has been a really challenging one, for me especially.  I found myself in a doctor’s office, undergoing tests, and/or subjected to procedures almost every month this year.  (The only exceptions were June and, so far, December).  And I’m not talking your run-of-the-mill, routine doctor’s appointments.  I’m talking about procedures that took hours, about referrals to specialists, about tests I’d never even heard of before.

It was hard, in every way.  Hard to be so sick and feeling so unwell.  Hard to wait for results.  Hard to receive results.

But now it’s Christmas time.  And all I really want is to keep us all healthy and safe.

With that, I wish all my readers a very happy, healthy, and safe holiday season!

Maybe it’s just me, but I’m tired of all the ads.  We just got done celebrating Thanksgiving, a day for giving thanks. For showing appreciation for the many blessings in our life.  For acknowledging what we already have.

And yet, my inbox is full of emails advertising specials and sales trying to tempt me to spend money.  To buy more stuff.  Stuff I don’t need.  Stuff that gift recipients don’t really need either.  Of course, I’ll be shopping and buying presents for family and friends.  But not during Thanksgiving weekend.  Not when I’m focused on spending time with my son and husband (when he’s not at work).

It just feels like every year Thanksgiving is getting increasingly short-changed.  More and more stores are opening on Thanksgiving Day.  Black Friday specials start Thursday afternoon.  It’s happening because of supply and demand.  People respond to it.  People go to the stores.  People shop and spend money.  

Our family has a yearly Thanksgiving tradition.  We go around the table, and we take turns sharing what we are most thankful for.  This year, we did it twice — once at my parents’ house for our full Thanksgiving meal and once at our house when we were feasting on leftovers later in the day.  And both times, when it was my son’s turn, he never once gave thanks for anything materialistic.  He gave thanks for us, his grandparents, our food, our home, our planet.

And that’s what it’s all about. 

My holiday shopping will start this week instead.

Our family doesn’t often go to the movies.  We tend to rent our DVDs from the local library, and as a result, we are usually way behind in seeing what everyone else has already stopped talking about.

That was the case with Hidden Figures, the Oscar-nominated film from last year.  We had seen the ads and billboards around town.  We had watched commercials, and we knew we were interested in seeing the movie.  But that didn’t happen until just a few months ago.  And now, Hidden Figures has become a new family favorite.

You can click here to read my personal essay, “Why Hidden Figures Means So Much To Our Family” recently published at MomsLA.com.