Creating 2019

I stopped making New Year's Resolutions many years ago. Instead, I create a one-word "theme" for the incoming year. Sometimes I would start thinking of my theme as early as December of the previous year, but I make sure I already have one before the end of January. That theme is basically a realm of possibility that I am creating for my self and for my life.

For example, in 2018 I created "victory" as my theme. What it meant is that in any aspect of my life, I would always create and/or try to find victories - big or small - that I could and should celebrate. Taking it one step further, I also saw aspects where it may look like defeats on the surface, but were actually tiny seeds of hard work being planted and victories waiting to happen.

For this year, I created romance and passion as my theme. Yes, you have just read it. I am boldly declaring to the universe that I am inviting a lasting, romantic relationship in my life. Hahaha!

But there's more to that theme, the way I'm creating it. It also means focusing my energies on activities that bring out my passionate and joyful sides - like traveling and (ironically) studying. I am looking forward to this vacation I'm taking this long Golden Week, because I get to reunite with my best friends from university, who I have not seen in almost 20 years. I am keen on traveling domestically this year as well; Kobe, Hakodate, and Kagoshima are on my list.

On the other hand, studying has brought out the passion I once had for my life and for the difference I can still make. Back in October I enrolled myself in a short-term business course that will end this June. In this course, we get to do as a project an actual business plan for a real client. At first I was so worried that the project that will be given to my team will be on a completely different field from my current job. Turns out, not only was our client from the same field but our project was on something that has always piqued my curiosity since I moved to Japan. Needless to say, this project will be the "affair" I'll be involved in - at least for the next few months.  

The Tokyo Skytree as seen from my business course classroom.

My 2019 theme is also about rekindling parts of my identity that I've turned my back on for many years - that "me" that was once hopeful and not jaded. When I went home for the holidays last year, I rummaged through my old cabinet and found a few sheets of paper containing poems - songs, actually - that I wrote back in university. This year I plan to have those transferred to music sheets, once I find someone who can do that for me. See, I don't know how to play any musical instrument - though studying piano is also on my to-do list.

And because "romance and passion" is what I created for my 2019, in it I am including all forms of pleasant surprises that will come my way. Money? Game! Love life? I already mentioned that above. Career change? I'm aiming for that! (the main reason I'm taking the business course, actually). Anything! As long as they are pleasant.

I am aware that not all surprises are pleasant. Should they come, I hope that I can quickly channel my inner Catriona Gray and have the wisdom to always see the silver lining in my setbacks, so as not to lose this zest I have for life.

Let me end this with an invitation: if you are to create your 2019, how would you want it?