Choosing Hope For The Year Ahead...

Hello Honeys, 

Happy holidays everyone 💖  How are you today?  Staying warm I hope?  This has been a year, hasn't it?  In fact, looking at the world around us, and listening to the news, it's still very much "being a year."  

So much has happened in the past 12 months that I could never have imagined this time last year.  My biggest concern in the run up to the holidays of 2019 was having enough energy to get through another busy, busy Christmas in retail.  

Who could have seen the chaos and heartache caused by a worldwide pandemic, lock-downs and everything else that's happened as a fall out from covid19.  I've lost two lovely co-workers and the world is a much colder, darker place without their kindness, gentle natures and never-far-away smiles. 

This has been a frightening year dear ones. Everything has changed. Everyone is wearing masks and every day in the media there are constant updates on infection rates and the fear of mutations.  I keep telling myself that every TV channel and newspaper needs us to watch or read and they do this by competing with each other for our attention.  Unfortunately, right now, they appear to be competing by trying to scare us and I'm not ashamed to admit that it's working... 

Somewhere though, in the non frightened, trying-to-be-sensible part of my brain, I keep telling myself the world has faced so many adversities, that it's gotten through them all and that we'll get through this one too. 

I've decided to be hopeful for the year ahead and, do feel free to laugh, but the best way I knew to show this new optimism was to buy a diary (in actual fact I've ended up with two but more on that in another post) 😊  

It may only be a little A5 book of days but I intend to fill it with plans and dreams and hopes 💖  I had so many plans for this year that never happened because of this horrid virus, so this year I want to tick off some boxes on my to-do list.  Among my planned, and dearly hope to be completed, activities for the year ahead are the following:

1. To finally control the clutter in our home.  

To work on each room in turn, have a proper clear out and to then re-organise everything.  I know honeys, what have I been doing since March? Well, not coping terribly well, if I'm honest. 

2. Planning my future.  

I know.  Maybe I should have started with this one, huh?  I tried, it felt very... well.... selfish if I'm honest.  I know, I can't help it, honeys 😖  Well, anyway, early on during this current situation, I took the decision to stop taking my rheumatoid arthritis medication.  It works by deliberately preventing my immune system from working and, as you can imagine dear ones, that's not what you want during a pandemic. 

By mid September I was in so much pain I was forced to re-start them but I'm very worried that I've caused serious damage to my spine.  I can't have x rays done yet, because we're not having face to face consultations at the hospital clinic, but I'm in constant pain and have lost so much of my mobility that I not only can't walk any distance but I can't stand for any length of time either.  

I've finally been forced to admit that all of the doctors I've seen at the hospital these past few years have been right.  All of them who have each asked me at some point, in a (too) surprised tone, "are you still working?"  So, I might not be much use to my employers, in a very busy retail environment, but that doesn't mean I can't do something.  I just have to figure out exactly what that something is... 

3. Planning our garden.  

I had so many plans for our beloved garden this year honeys.  I wanted to put in some more lavender for our lovely visiting bees, another blueberry shrub for our feathered guests and to plan out a pretty little seating area near the back door.  Hubby will be helping and, thanks to my now almost constant spinal pain, doing most of the physical work too, bless him (love you sweetheart💖)  

4. Concentrating on improving my health.  

As I already said, the arthritis is winning dear ones, and I can't allow that.  I need to start from where I am and try to reclaim what I've lost.  With Hubby fully on board, I've already changed how we eat. We're trying a low carb diet with lots of yummy steamed vegetables making up rainbows on our plates 😊 

We use a menu board every weekend to plan out the dinners for the week ahead and I'm loving finding ways to adapt our favourite recipes to make them lower in carbs and much higher in vegetables.  We just bought a vibration plate, which I'm hoping will help my circulation and will (along with my yoga) help to get me back to where I need to be. 

On to the future...

These are my resolutions for the year ahead.  I'm not coping with the losses of this past year so well honeys, so I have to find a way to keep moving forward, no matter how difficult that is.   It really does feel to me as if this year has sped past so quickly.  It's almost gone now.  I find myself wishing I was dreaming because then I could wake up, go to work and tell my friends about my weird dream.   

I remember hearing once that if we knew what was in store for us, we'd never get out of bed.  I prefer to think that life has more good than bad in it and we just have to reach the good parts is all.  Things will get better, they always do. We just have to stay positive and fill our diaries with plans and dreams and yes, all of those hopes 💖   

What are your plans for the year ahead honeys?  Have you bought a new diary yet?  Let's make those plans for 2021 and then let's tick off those boxes as we make all of them happen 💖 If you'd like to download a menu board for meal planning you can find two downloadable printable menus here and,for planning ahead, you can find a cute little "to do" printable here.   

Why not either laminate them, or place them inside a glass frame and use an erasable marker to write on them?  Enjoy honeys 💖  Till next time dear ones, wishing you the best, brightest, happiest holidays ever, hugs always xx