Hello, hello, friends. This is the first time that I feel I truly made significant inroads on my yearly list. Now, I haven’t done a comparison, so it’s entirely possible that I simply chose easier items to check off this year (I did notice that three items required me to…have a meal. Ok, that is too easy.) In any event, this seems like a good place to acknowledge that these yearly lists are fairly unscientific and might I add, slightly random. First of all, some items take about an hour to do, while others take concerted efforts over the long haul. Some cost little to nothing and others cost thousands of dollars. So there’s that. And, I continue to think of more good ideas throughout the year that I might have wanted to include on my list, and when I strive to do them I feel slightly put out that I don’t get “credit” for checking them off (for example, going to Amsterdam). Ah, well. Such is life. I still maintain that a list like this can be very helpful for moving the ball forward on various goals and dreams, and on filling your life more intentionally with the things you actually want to do.
So this is the list I wrote a year ago, and how I did with it:
- Eat a serving of fruits and vegetables (both) every day. I realized that I really don’t like daily tracking-type goals, and replaced this with donate blood. I attempted this once but was not eligible.
- Go to Pita Bar for dinner after work one day. Done!
- Have a burger, fries, and milkshake (pareve) meal. Done!
- Get some good old-fashioned Chinese takeout with a friend. Done (with my sister)!
- Visit my grandmother. Done!
- Visit Storm King Art Center with a friend. Done! (Loved this, need to go back and see more.)
- Give away 20 articles of clothing. Did a closet purge, huge accomplishment for me – done!
- Shred my huuuuuge bag of papers that need to be shredded. Bought a shredder, and this is done!
- Finish one jar of (240) 5000 IU vitamin D supplements. Done!
- Find a holistic dietician or similar to help me with a thyroid issue (hypothyroidism/Hashimoto’s). I worked with a dietician for several sessions, got many great tips, and…didn’t keep much of it up. So kind of done, but not really done.
- Aim for a 20 minute walk most days. I replaced this with complete lingering trainings. Done!
- Do a scavenger hunt at the Met. I did a watered-down version of this in March. And I visited the Met twice this year, which was great.
- Find a ballet class. Not done – I let this one go.
- Walk the High Line. Done!
- Have four nature experiences relating to the four elements. Not done. It was a cool idea that didn’t take.
- Watch five classic (children’s) movies. Watched Home Alone, Groundhog Day, Miracle on 34th Street, It’s a Wonderful Life, and Pollyanna. Done!
- Watch season 5 of All Creatures Great and Small. Done!
- Visit Paris. Done!
- Visit the Yorkshire Dales. Incredibly, DONE!
- See my first private practice clients. I worked on this and then ultimately dropped this goal. I don’t really want a private practice right now.
- Teach an MSW course. I applied to several schools but did not get this. I taught a number of undergraduate courses this year and I’m satisfied in the teaching realm for now.
- Do a big therapy training. I did a Somatic Intervention training in July and completed the Journal to the Self instructor certification training in August through November. Done!
- Finish the literature review for my dissertation proposal. First draft – done!
- Publish two articles anywhere. I wrote two articles for a publication related to my job. I wanted to push this to three but let that go. Done!
- Liquidate the medical supplies gemach that I am (was) currently hosting. This happened in March b”H. Done!
All in all, a solid performance. 2025 has been an indulgent year for me. I let myself go a little wild on the self-care end of things and enjoyed a huge number of Artist Date-type outings, events, exhibits, etc. Not to mention some great travel, and lots of good restaurant meals. And I read over 60 books! I am very grateful. I feel very fortunate to be able to do these things for myself, to have the health, state of mind, finances, and emotional support to be able to grasp life with both hands and savor it. Each and every day of this calendar year has been a gift.
All of this took place against a backdrop of challenges and difficulties for acheinu kol beis Yisroel…I don’t want to be oblivious or insensitive. It has been a difficult couple of years for Jewish people everywhere. I hope that a post like this can be somewhat of an escape from heavier topics, and maybe inspiration for easy ways to add bright spots to your life, without coming across as clueless and insensitive.
I am excited to share my new list on Wednesday. It’s a bit more “serious” but still fun, and sharing it here makes it seem easier to accomplish.
As always, thank you for being here!
(Photo credit: Ylanite Koppens/Pexels)
