This year is a little different. I feel the need for something to mark the end of something and the beginning of something else. At the end of 2009, I was weary, tired and just plain burnt-out. 2009 marked the end of a relationship, the success of a huge summer job and the beatings of a difficult semester. For the first time, I wanted nothing to do with things that happened in the previous year and only wanted to focus on the shiny new year in front of me. For the first time, I wanted the mark of the New Year to hold meaning. So here goes, my first attempt at a common undertaking.

#1 Recognize beauty; learn to love it
I want to be able to revel in the fact that what I do on a daily basis holds beauty and meaning in and of itself. Just taking the time to truly taste food, to truly listen to people, to truly see the world. There is beauty all around me and it’s much to easy to get caught up in the urgency of things to realize it.

#2 Abs of steel
Colleen Thomas is one of my dance professors; she is probably 5′3” and barely 110 pounds. Without a doubt, she could easily lift anybody in my dance class, including a 200 pound twenty-year-old. Colleen is especially known for her “Colleen sit-ups”, which has even stumped Bill T. Jones. This resolution is not only to become a master of these mythical sit-ups, but also to become the best dancer I could possibly be.

#3 Let Girl meet Boy. Let Love happen.
This year, I need to meet new people. I need to meet new guys. I need to like at least some of these guys. It’s hard to make this priority in college, but hey, it’s gotta get done sometime. L has already told me that I should stop pining over Bboy A and she’s right. So the plan: meet Boy, date Boy, let myself fall for Boy, happily ever after.

#4 Change
Big D is the first person I met who enjoyed change so much. He is still probably the one person I know who can handle change so well. Change is inevitable. Change is good. So I resolve, again, to engage in change this year. To be less intense (in the scary way). To be free (from doubt and uncertainty). To be creative (in activities that feed that soul). To be open-minded (to new opportunities). To be focused (on what I need to do). To be successful (in what I want to do). To be happy (with who I am).