As We Say Goodbye to 2020...

Many of us are more then ready to put 2020 behind us as we are hopeful a new year will bring better times ahead. Sure things are still rocky as there is much uncertainanty in the world right now. This is all the more reason to focus on the things we can change, starting with ourself. I can sit here and think of all the ways 2020 let me down, but I'm so done with feeling sorry for myself. So with that being said I am focusing on what 2020 taught me and how it changed me for the better.

The best thing the year brought me was the clarity to start taking better care of myself physically, mentally and spiritually. Of course I always knew the steps I should take to get myself there, but knowing something and actually applying it are two completely opposite things. For years I made that typical New Year's resolutions to get in better shape, eat better.. you know how it goes. Well, I can honestly say it finally clicked for me, and it only took 44 years! Yes I just stated my age and it doesn't bother me like it used to, in fact I'm proud of it.

I can't even tell you when clarity came to me, it just magically happenend, and I'm so very thankful it did. I have never felt better than I do as I sit here writing this. I could go on and on about how great I feel and the reasons behind it, but I don't want to bore you to your core so I'll try to tone it down. We have all read these stories before so I know mine is not that unique, I'm just grateful for the changes and never want to go back to the old me.

I'll start by giving gratitude to my dog.. yes my dog. I used to go to our local shelter just to see the dogs and try to give them a few moments of happiness. As hard as it was to leave them all behind, I would try my best to share a little joy with them.. cheesy I know. I have always loved animals, far more than I did other humans. One day as we were leaving the shelter my husband noticed the breed I've always wanted (Doberman Pincher) making her way to the adoption side. She had been on a three-day hold waiting for her previous owner to come find her, but they never did. I interacted with her, she was such a sweet girl but very scared and timid. I wanted to bring her home so went through the adoption process.

Once she was our family member I started doing a lot of research on her breed and was definitely a little worried because as a high energy breed she requires a lot of exercise, something I almost never did. I started taking her on small walks which got longer and longer. We started finding beautiful spots in our neighborhood to hike, and before I knew it we would be doing 4 miles a day... for fun! I started jogging with her which lead to running. It really has been a whirlwind! We now have our routine and I can not imagine not exercising daily.

When I have days I can't get out and run or hike I can feel myself become a bit grouchy, so I bought a treadmill. At first I didn't expect to use it much, but I have already gotten so much use out of it. I started feeling so much better and just really proud of myself. I was finally doing what I always told myself I would, and it felt great. Once I saw and felt the changes exercising had on me I started paying attention to what I put inside my body.

Getting away from processed foods, and all that junk came naturally. I was always drawn to sugar, it was my addiction... I started cutting back and the migraines which I suffered from since I was a teenager started lessening. I always heard "You are what you eat" but never fully understood it until I really looked at my diet. I used to buy some foods labeled as "healthy" but once I started reading the food labels I realized it's just a healtheir junk option... but still junk.

I now avoid most isles in the grocery store, and for me that is huge. I used to love walking up and down every isle, seeing new products and spending so much money on items I did not need. The way I eat now compared to the beggining of the year is so different it's actually quite shocking. I can't even imagine eating half the crap I used to! Now I have become friendly with our local fruit/vegetable stand owners and stop by every other week to fill up on fresh locally grown fruits and vegtables. It's amazing how much better the items taste from them compared to the grocery store.

Once I healed my body by treating it the way I always should have, I started seeing things differetly. I used to be a pretty negative person, always seeing the negative and rarely seeing postive in just about any situation. What a sad exsstance, I know! This is probally the biggest change I have felt shift inside me and thank goodness! I still have a long journey ahead of me to become the person I want to be, but looking back I am happy to have gone through these changes in 2020.

This year gave me time to work on myself instead of merely existing any longer. Yes we were quarantined, couldn't hang out with our friends and family or go anywhere, but I hung out with myself and started becoming who I wanted to be all along. We all have things we disliked about 2020 but if you can just find something good it brought you.. take that into the new year and continue pushing forward.

Happy New Year and may 2021 bring out the best you yet!