Hi there friends! I know it’s been a quick minute since I last posted anything, and I could probably come up with a million excuses – but let’s be honest. I was really just being lazy. Which is exactly what this post is going to resolve!
I have been lucky enough these past two months to be able to see one of my best friends a whopping three times! I know that may not sound like much, but for two girls who used to watch the Ohio State vs. Michigan game together every year until she moved to Cincinnati (I’m slowly turning her into a Buckeye) and celebrate touchdowns (mostly Ohio State’s) with touchdown truffles (do yourself a favor and buy chocolate truffles from Costco – thank me later), seeing her so many times in a year is a huge deal. The last time we were together was just a few days ago over Christmas, and I slowly had the realization that this year was coming to a close…quickly. As we watched Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows pt. 2 and gossiped, she mentioned something about her friends who had been dating for ten years and how they were high school sweethearts who had started dating at around 17 years old. And that was when I had my pre-quarter life crisis.
I suppose it came at a convenient time though, what with it being New Year’s and all. Now typically, I’m not one for resolutions. Every year it seems as if everyone has the same idea: lose weight, be a kinder person, learn something new, travel the world…and then three months in we realize that we are probably not going to accomplish any of these things this year. We become complacent. The way I see it, why make a resolution which can be summarized as “New Year, New Me” when we could – and should – be working on small resolutions every day, striving to be a better person no matter what. Sure, we can say we’ll go to the gym more or donate to charity or take up a hobby, but then we realize we have a whole year to accomplish all these things so we procrastinate and procrastinate, and lo and behold, it’s December 31st again and we’ve basically done diddly squat. So this year, after much deliberation – and heavy breathing at the thought of turning 25 – I’ve decided I am going to make a resolution: “New Year, Better Me”.
I love the person I am, but I know there’s room for improvement. I’d like to think I’m a pretty decent employee, friend, sister, and daughter. However, I’m determined to make this the year that I really start to become the best version of myself that I can be in this moment. I’m going to be a better adventurer, and actually plan the trips I want to take this year. I’m going to be a better chef, and actually try my hand at those hundreds of recipes I’ve pinned on Pinterest. I’m going to be a better extrovert, and actually make plans, dress up, go out, and meet new people. I’m going to be better at doing the little things that can make my day brighter, and actually make my bed and keep my room clean and eat three meals a day. I’m going to be a better social media maven, and actually be more relevantly active on Twitter, LinkedIn, and, of course, WordPress. But most importantly, I’m going to be better at self-love: working less hours; going to the gym more; having more dance parties in my bedroom or car or bathroom; creating more #squadgoal moments with my friends; using a memory jar to remember all the good moments that this year will bring; doing and buying the things that make me happy; and most importantly, not letting anyone, especially myself, bring me down. As Tom Haverford would say, “Treat yo’self!”. I’m going to laugh more and smile more and love more. I’m going to strive to exercise more patience, and think more before I speak or act. This is my resolution: to work as hard as I possibly can every damn day to be the happiest, best version of myself I can possibly be this year. I’m going to take it one day at a time, but boy am I going to be a better me.
Richa Srivastava 