Resolute

 

Second verse . . . same as the first.

Let’s face it, most of us don’t sit down and dream up these wild pledges to ourselves at the first of the year.  Instead, they get re-cycled from year to year or from points within the year.  At least that’s the way it is for me.  Changes I contemplate are either on-going struggles or transformations I’ve temporarily abandoned or neglected.  Shrink my body (Lose weight . . . eat healthier . . . exercise more).  Expand my brain (read more . . . write more . . . take a class).  Invigorate my being (be a better person . . . come out of my shell . . . strive to become more involved).  Goals are a necessary tool for change, and just because we don’t achieve them as often as we’d like is no reason to abandon them…or stop creating them.

What’s different . . . and the key to realizing these desired changes . . . is your resolve.  The obstacles, lying in wait to trip us up, are numerous.  Expect them.  Plan for them.  Fortify yourself by remembering that stumbling across one does not end the journey.  That’s what life is all about, overcoming barriers and adapting.  I see far too many people who give up on themselves because of one simple slip.  Sometimes I think that they secretly welcome it, using their perceived failure to escape the burden of trying.  But if they just saw for what it is, a setback, one that they could have even anticipated, then they wouldn’t have to settle for “maybe next year”.  And when those unforeseeable complications (major medical issues, loss, financial crisis, etc.) raise their ugly heads, be patient. Time is a healer that abides no short-cuts. 

Enough of the soapbox. 

I have seen my fair share of obstacles, but I’m resolute in the belief that 2015 will see one of my novels published, or represented by an agent, one or the other.  I now have years of writing under my belt…multiple books and short stories in my repertoire…and I’m part of a wonderful CP group. My confidence is higher than ever.

And I’m going to continue to grow this blog.  How do I do that?  Not by pulling in followers by offering contests or give-a-ways (although I’m not saying I’ll totally against that), but rather by being entertaining and having interesting things to say.  There are hundreds of aspiring author blogs out here, all documenting their own quest for publication, and if I can’t stand out amongst them then what hope can I have of achieving my own dream?

2015 starts Thursday…but it is not the beginning.   

Let’s go!  What do you say?