Goodbye 2019 - Hello 2020

It’s been quite the hectic holiday season spent primarily in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. We visited friends and family, entertained friends and family and enjoyed time with Lin and Mark. We shopped, we cooked, we ate, we wrapped, we drank, we cooked and ate some more. We unwrapped, we sang, we laughed, we cooked, we ate and drank some more. All the makings of a frenetic, but wonderful couple of weeks. Then in a flash, we returned to Las Vegas to continue the celebration of New Year’s Eve and the dawn of 2020 with Mary and Paul, our Las Vegas family.  The 3-hour time difference took its toll and we were in bed by 9pm. The new year arrived without us.

And now, we’re catching our breaths and planning the new year which portends to be just as full and exciting as the past years have been. The year’s schedule is already full with a nearly a  four month March-June walk from Jerusalem to Rome (via a few non-walking portions to avoid Syria and Turkey) which will also include some exploration of Israel, Greece, Macedonia, Albania and time with friends in eastern Italy. Then there’s some ‘Blue’ time for projects and roadtrips, another go at the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta in October and a tentative meet-up in Charleston (???) in November to celebrate Lin’s 60th birthday. Somewhere in there we’ll need to make room for house projects and a little downtime (what’s that?).

This time of year is my time to review the past year and see what I’ve accomplished and then set some goals for myself for 2020. Some goals never seem to change; others get added or removed either because they’ve been accomplished or because they’ve lost relevance. It’s been such a good year for us... for me especially. I did manage to finish a book in 2019 (with a little help from my friends... David, Gentry & George). Las Vegas for Non- Gamblers will never be a best seller, but it’s something I wanted to complete and finally did, which was quite satisfying.

I pretty much met my goals for all the healthy things I wanted to do in 2019. I maintained a desirable weight, exercised regularly (thanks for David) and ate well (except for the past month which was a disaster). I could probably do a bit less alcoholic imbibing, but heck, what’s the fun in that?

My very favorite photo from walking the Via Francigena

We walked the Via Francigena... a major feat and a bucket list item checked off for David. To be truthful, despite the fact that David was absolutely positive it was doable, I wasn’t. I had my doubts as to my own stamina, endurance and abilities. Having completed the walk, I consider it to have been an awesome trek and a spiritual, self-reflective experience. A walk I  wouldn’t have missed for the world and now I yearn for more. You learn a lot about yourself on a trip like this one. In 2020, we plan to walk from Jerusalem to Rome and next year... who knows? There’s lots of world to walk.

So what’s left on my resolutions list? The same one I struggle most with every year: Be a nicer, better person. I do try, but I find myself so often impatient and intolerant. So this one item stays on the list year after year after year in the hopes that eventually the nice will outweigh the not-so-nice. Maybe in 2020?

What about you? Was 2019 good to you? Do you make resolutions or personal goals? What are you looking forward to in 2020?