When the clock strikes midnight on December 31st, we will each bid farewell to 12 months, 52 weeks, 365 days, 8,760 hours, 525,600 minutes and 31,536,000 seconds. That year will be gone forever. We will never have a chance to live it again. How did you spend 2013?
But at that same stroke of midnight, we will each welcome in a fresh New Year.
How will you spend 2014? Suggestion: Think of your time this coming year as something you can invest. Then work at investing it in things that matter deeply to you. The best present, the best contribution, the best charity is often your time…the gift of yourself. Here are a few investment ideas for 2014: Spend time with someone who needs you at their side. Try mending a broken relationship. Write a letter to a friend you’ve not seen in awhile. Volunteer. Every now and then do a small kindness for someone who will never guess it was you.
Investments like these pay BIG dividends. And while you’re investing, don’t forget to do something nice for yourself, like a long hot bath or a walk in the woods after a fresh snow.
Schedules can get crazy, but keep investing. And remember, life really is about more than just the Hokey Pokey!
I will spend the next two months backpacking across India and posting these blog entries from the other side of planet earth. What a way to begin 2014! New Year’s Day will actually be spent at the Taj Mahal. Though I will start the year far from my family and friends–with the exception of two dear ones who are joining me for shorter periods–my heart will be back at home with them. They are, indeed, the ones who mean the very most to me. They walk alongside me on my journey, even when I am thousands of miles from them, who are always there when I need them, who affirm and encourage the best in me, and who teach me the most about the value of life. And I will be grateful beyond words when 2014 rings in a brand spankin’ New Year!
Available at Great Big Canvas. Firework display at New Years Eve in a city, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Some Favorite New Year Quotes
A New Year’s resolution is something that goes in one year and out the other. (Unknown)
Stir the eggnog, lift the toddy, Happy New Year, everybody. (Phyllis McGinley)
May all your troubles last as long as your New Year’s resolutions! (Joey Adams)
