Reverb 10 - December 13 - 18 (AKA the "Sarah Sucks at Keeping Up!" edition)

Oh lawd people. I'm terrible at keeping up this week - between work, holiday shopping, holiday making, sleeping and seeing the hubster, I took a blogging hiatus. 

December 13 – Action When it comes to aspirations, it’s not about ideas. It’s about making ideas happen. What’s your next step? (Author: Scott Belsky)
I don't know yet. There are so many things one can do in life and it can be daunting to choose your next path. I'm interested in trying something I have never done before - something that challenges and scares me!


December 14 – Appreciate What’s the one thing you have come to appreciate most in the past year? How do you express gratitude for it? (Author: Victoria Klein)

I really appreciate the people in my life. I love my husband, my dog (he's a person to me!), my family and my friends - and I hope that I can somehow show them how much they mean to me. 


Another thing I am grateful for is the small comfort that I have in my life - I'm very lucky to have a warm home, new shoes and clean clothing. There are so many people in the world - even people in our own communities - who don't have these luxuries. After volunteering this year with Interfaith Ministries delivering dog food to low-income seniors, I have a lot more appreciation for all the blessings I have had in my life. 


December 15 – 5 Minutes Imagine you will completely lose your memory of 2010 in five minutes. Set an alarm for five minutes and capture the things you most want to remember about 2010. (Author: Patti Digh)

 Oh noes! I want to take it all with me! Two experience that stick out most have to do with both my husband and animals. For my birthday, I met a giraffe! Well, like 3 giraffes, and we were able to feed them. It was the coolest birthday present ever and in every photo I look like I'm going to pee my pants with excitement!


The second experience was one I have previously blogged about: flying a f%^&*ng hawk! It was so very awesome and I will never forget what it was like to have that big ass bird on my arm.


December 16 – Friendship How has a friend changed you or your perspective on the world this year? Was this change gradual, or a sudden burst? (Author: Martha Mihalick)
Friendship should always change you. I heard in college that friendship is a a school of virtue (not sure who said it and Google is not telling me) and it's true: you should learn to be a better person thanks to the lessons your friends teach you. 


Through Alla I have learned to be more thoughtful (she always remembers special occasions and pulls out all the stops to make people feel loved), Erin taught me fierce loyalty, which she no doubt learned from her awesome family, and the importance of knowledge (whether it be knowledge of politics, economics or the significance of Twilight), and Ruthie taught me that you only get one life - use it well. 

But for all the things I learned from friends, I learned the most this year from a friendship that ended. Like everything in life, nothing lasts forever and sometimes its better to have things that don't work end, instead of dragging on. To burn up hard and bright, rather than go forever. 

December 17 – Lesson Learned. What was the best thing you learned about yourself this past year? And how will you apply that lesson going forward? (Author: Tara Weaver)
I learn hard. I'm a thick, stubborn person and I need to get slapped in the face by something to have the lesson stick. Nearly 30 years into my life, I have finally (sorta) learned that I can't please everybody and that no matter how nice or accommodating I am, someone is going to be pissed off or disappointed. I can't take it personally - I can only do my best, be myself and let the cards fall as they may.


December 18 – Try What do you want to try next year? Is there something you wanted to try in 2010? What happened when you did / didn’t go for it? (Author: Kaileen Elise)

2010 was the year of going for it - I took a meditation class, a class on printmaking, and one on burlesque dancing (so much fun, so much fail on my part - I'm not meant for gyrating the jiggle! HAHAHA). We traveled, we met giraffes and we celebrated 5 years of marriageness/happy time. 2010 rocked my socks off.


In 2011, I'm going to keep it up - I'm planning on making my own wardrobe and only buying what I can't make (still figuring out what the limit to that is!), I want to take some trips and give some other projects a whirl. I can't wait to get started!