Reflections and Intentions
End of 2023 into 2024
I was aiming to have this post out in the first week of January, however after a few days off the radar because of a colonoscopy, I then got hit by this nasty cold and chest infection that seems to be going around. So, here we are in the second half of the month, and this is only just going out now. Still, better late than never, yes? Here we go then…
Who doesn’t love a good round up from the last twelve months? We love to write them and love to read them.
The 31st Dec – 1st Jan watershed can feel rather arbitrary, especially as the messaging can be rather harsh. We go from the warm and fuzzy feeling of Christmas and ‘Twixmas’ (which is the week between Christmas and New year when no-one really knows what day of the week it is and leftovers are the food staple) straight into making resolutions about health and fitness, about habit creating or breaking, about being a ‘better person’, all of which adds unnecessary pressure. There is no need to wait until January to change a habit, no need to create a better version of yourself, no need to place stringent restrictions on yourself randomly. Of course, if you want to have goals, then have them. If you want to give up drinking/eating meat/chocolate for reasons beyond ‘because it’s January’ then go for it. But let’s remember to be kind to ourselves!
All of that said, I do think it’s good to look back and take stock of the year. What was good? What wasn’t so good? Is there anything we can change as we go forward?
So here are some things that were good for me and my family last year:
1. We celebrated my eldest’s birthday with a trip to the National Space Centre and it was brilliant.
2. We went to Iceland on holiday, with my Mum in Law, in the same week as my husband’s birthday. It was an enormous privilege and truly an incredible experience.
3. We went to Darlington to celebrate the marriage of our good friends James and Christelle. The hotel we stayed at upgraded our room to a suite, which was rather lovely.
4. I saw Kate Mosse, the author, on her book tour for ‘Warrior Queens and Quiet Revolutionaries’ and it was very good.
5. Another holiday in Devon with our best friends, the farmhouse we rented in Noss Mayo was amazing and accommodated 9 of us without it feeling all squashed in. The weather was awful but the week was great fun.
6. Jon and I went to The Mumbles for my birthday weekend. He competed in the Welsh Offshore Champs and got Gold in both races!
7. Our youngest turned 14.
8. I went on a weekend retreat with the Third Moon Women’s group, I only knew one other person there at the beginning but made lots of friends whilst there! It was an exceedingly hot weekend.
9. Holiday number three (we don’t usually have this many in a year!) was in Cornwall with my wider family. The weather changed again and it rained most of the time we were there. A highlight was finding the village of Lerryn, and buying a new raincoat in Fowey!
10. Our youngest, who is home educated, started at a local college on their 14 – 16 pathway and has loved it, much to my relief.
11. I went to the Hastings Book Festival, which was fabulous. So much so that I’ve signed up to be a volunteer next year.
12. I went to Glasgow on a research trip for my book about Scottish Suffragette Helen Crawfurd (you can read more about that on my author’s Substack pages) and had a great time.
13. I visited my sister and her family in their new home on the outskirts of Kendal, that was lovely.
14. I went to London to meet up with James and Christelle before she flew back to San Diego. We hung out at the British Library and St Pancras and Kings Cross stations – it was a lot of fun!
15. And finally, we spent Christmas with our best friends down in Somerset which was just wonderful.
So, lots that has been good. There were also more stressful times, which I may write more about at some point but not just now. It’s interesting to look back, I had thought that 2023 had not involved much travel (other than the 3 holidays!) but many of these highlights are around being away from home!
Will I make any changes as I go forward? Well, I intend to continue to be kind to myself, to take notice of where my energy is going and try to be intentional about those things. More writing, more singing (I love it and have just joined a choir to do this more often), more travelling, more reading and so on.
Do you do this reflecting? Is there anything you’d like to share about highlights from last year or intentions for the coming year? I’d love to hear from you!