changing

In a few days, the whole world will say goodbye to 2009. I don’t know about you but whenever the year ends, I drown in feelings of helplessness- especially if it’s been a good year like this one. 2008 was a pretty boring year for me, full of unfulfilled plans and failed attempts at flight. I knew I had to start 2009 with a different approach. This time last year, I sat down to write my New Year’s Resolutions. They had to be big, yes, but they also had to be manageable.

What is it about New Year’s Day that gives such hope to folks like us? It’s like with a pen and paper, you can wash away all the errors of the past 365 days. There is a massive hope for change for everyone. Problem is, change doesn’t really come easy for me. I’m quite the creature of habit, you see. In restaurants, I favor tried and tested dishes over the exciting and new. My hair has been revolving around two or three styles ever since high school and I still dress the same way I did two years ago.

It usually takes something huge for me to change and with 2008, it was a huge lot of nothing. It’s like my whole life stagnated that year and so I knew I had to shake things up for 2009. Last year, I set out to do a couple of things: expand my horizons, improve in my career, be stronger in faith and fall in love.

I met a ton of bloggers this year. If that’s not expanding my horizons, I don’t know what is. I’m usually very picky about who I let into my life but I must say everyone’s been really nice. I met people who made me feel like I was part of something. I met people who inspired me to take my writing to different heights. I met people who taught me valuable life lessons. Some people challenged me to use my head. Others challenged me to use my heart. This online universe we live in and the bloggers that I’ve met will always hold a special place in my heart.

Career wise, I’m still where I was a year ago. The only difference is I feel like the experiences I’ve had this year have made me stronger and wiser. As a facilitator, I am much more confident in what I do and say. I no longer let small things like office gossip or disagreements get in the way of my work. I’ve learned to develop a special bond with the people I train, some I’ve even come to call my closest friends. They too have carved a special place in my heart.

Of all the lessons and epiphanies I’ve had this year (and if you read this blog regularly, you would know that I am a sucker for lessons and epiphanies), I find my year-ender to be the most important- he who stops changing has stopped learning. All in all, this year has been very good to me. I feel very blessed that for once, everything is in its rightful place. There were many tears this year but there were also many, many laughs. And while change doesn’t really come easy for me, I know that I must go through it. It shows that I am still human. It shows that I am capable of learning.

I almost feel a little sad that the year’s about to end but there’s also a huge part of me that is very excited for 2010. I have many more things to accomplish next year and because of the lessons I picked up along the way, I know that whatever comes my way, I’ll be just fine.

As I am writing this, dawn is breaking and the sun is starting to warm the metropolis and its residents. I almost forgot one of the biggest changes I’ve made this year. I open the door and the room is freezing. I undress and crawl back into bed. Suddenly, your warmth is all I feel. I snuggle into a hole within your being. Thank you for crashing my walls. Thank you for sticking around. I know that the little victories I had this year would mean nothing if you weren’t there for me at the end of each day. You once asked me how much I love you and I told you I couldn’t give you an answer. All I know is more than anything and anyone, you have the biggest place in my heart.

	Jennifer Hudson I Am Changing Dreamgirls: Music From The Motion Picture