Well true to convention i'm doing that again this year, and like everyone else right now, i'm full of resolve and good intentions. Its 2010, its the start of a new decade, which gets people thinking of ten years which flew by, which then leads to 'bloody hell i'm old' and then 'oh god i havent done half of what i wanted to do with my life.' I'm no different.
This sort of determination was further engineered one day back home during Xmas, when i visited my auntie's place for the first time in forever and she pulled out a few dog-earred, dusty photo albums for us.
Its hard to reconcile the image of your dad, lazing on the sofa with The Mirror newspaper and Sky Sports blaring in the background, to the one in the faded sepia photographs, posing in tight white trousers and an open collar t shirt in front of his pride-and-joy automobile. It was even more astonishing to see photos of my aunts in their teenage years, painstakingly fashionable in platform heels, berets, flared jeans and flowery tops. On top of that, they were really very beautiful (and they still look amazing for their age today) you could see in the pictures how youthful they felt and how happy they were. My auntie even commented that if she hadn't met my uncle, she could have become a film star(!) - hopes and dreams of the young, too often fade at the point of pipe dreams. My auntie at age sixteen would never have imagined her life turned out the way it did.
What I fail to appreciate enough is how our my parents, my family, sacrifice so much so that their kids can have a future more fruitful than theirs. They had aspirations like me, but they didnt have what we have now - a decent education, a tolerant culture largely free of racism, freedom to go about your merry way. Whenever my mum begins to lecture me, i'll be able to hold up pretty well until she brings out that old chestnut about "you have to do better - don't end up like me" - i mean, you couldn't rip out my insides more if you had stuck a vicious parasitic worm in my stomach.
Anyway, I think the main distinguishing feature this year is that i'm actually publishing this (OK i did it last year too but i've actually told a few people this time around so now I have witnesses), so i'm hoping theres more of an incentive to get things going. Its all well and good making boldly ambiguous statements on the 1st of January, but judge me come 31st December and we'll see if my resolve holds true.
- Going to start a photo album/scrapbook of sorts - tangible memories held in your hand
hold more value to me then megabytes on a computer. - I'm going to get up earlier in the mornings - sleep is great but you cant take a photo and stick it in an album.
- Travel more (not just abroad but within the UK, haven't explored enough of it)
- Step up to the mark at work.. having discussed with my manager, i really need to get noticed for my work in 2010 if i want to reap the rewards.
- Join a Badminton club.
- Do some volunteering work.
- Explore more restaurants, clubs, bars (a new list to be drawn up for 2010)
- Learn to Ski!
- Actually blog about my travels within six months of having gone
- Let people judge me for not upholding the above.
- In the words of the Swedish proverb that adorns my bedroom door: fear less Hope more; eat less, Chew more; whine less, Breathe more; talk less, Say more; Love more and all good things will be yours..
