New Year’s Resolutions

It’s beyond the middle of the year and I realize that I’ve in no way followed through on my New Year’s resolutions, have you?

Getting my finances in better shape.  Working on my health.  Building our business at the office….  Ok, I do work on our business, all the time, but aside from that…I’ve failed dramatically.  Does anyone ever accomplish what they set out to do in a year?  In 2016 I was working on losing weight and was doing quite well until the Christmas holidays rolled in.  I promised myself that in January I would begin again but that never manifested itself.  I used to be pretty good with my finances but then ‘real life’ set in with it’s myriad of problems and issues and my finances have never been the same  

In 10 years I’ll reach retirement age with little to show for it and when I really think about that I’m not sure how much it matters anyway.  I’m in no worse position than many people my age and better than some.  I have a wonderful husband, my family (for better and worse), an awesome cat who showers me with love and a puppy who, as obnoxious as she is at times, I truly love and enjoy.  I have my faith which sustains me throughout this life I’ve been gifted with.  I have a roof over my head, cool air in the summer and warmth in the winter.  I have a reliable 14 year old car that gets me where I need to be.  I have plenty of food to eat and fresh, clean water to drink.  I have energy to continue working and that’s a good thing since I’m sure I’ll end up being a Wal-Mart greeter when I’m 85, lol!  We struggle, like everyone else, but we have love and that is the greatest blessing of them all.

I will continue to make those New Year’s resolutions as long as I’m able because they help me to focus and I think, in some ways, that has to help at least work towards the goals I’ve set for myself.  What about you, do you accomplish your goals set at the beginning of the year?  Do you even set resolutions?  Everyone’s different but we’re still all so similar too, isn’t it cool?

A New Year, A New Book Recommendation!

I’m currently reading When Heaven & Earth Change Places by Le Ly Hayslip.  The description begins “…the haunting memoir of a girl on the verge of womanhood in a world turned upside down. The youngest of six children in a close-knit Buddhist family, Le Ly Hayslip was twelve years old when U.S. helicopters langed in Ky La, her tiny village in central Vietnam.”  Although I’m only about 10% of the way into it I can already tell it’s going to be one of those books that I’ll always remember.  I tend to read non-fiction books like this because I like to learn.  In my office we deal with a lot of Asian people and, although some of them are great friends, they can be difficult to deal with.  This book has already taught me a great deal about their culture and what they’ve had to endure before moving to the United States.  You can “know” the history of a place but until you’ve experienced it through their eyes, their memories, you can’t imagine what it was like to live through what they have.  If you decide to read this book I’d love it if you shared your impressions with me!  The above is an affiliate link but that isn’t why I’m sharing it here, I really think it’s an important book to read and whether you decide to buy online through me or by some other method all that I feel is important is that you read it.