Welcoming a New Year

 “I believe in pink. I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner. I believe in kissing, kissing a lot. I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong. I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls. I believe that tomorrow is another day and I believe in miracles.” -Audrey Hepburn 

It's so difficult to not get in the full scale resolution mode when January rolls in, ready to chuck your current life out the window in favor of some perfect version where you take public transportation daily and make green smoothies after waking naturally without an alarm. I'll admit, I love a fresh start as much as the next person, and after spending a week in Ohio eating cheesy casseroles & cookies, I truly did long to drink that yucky-looking-but-delicious green sludge.  

But the problem with grandiose resolution making is that it creates this mindset that we're not up to snuff, and that we need "fixing". And, when you ultimately don't get up early enough to take the bus to work (ahem, me this morning), you feel as if you've let yourself down. And it's only the 10th day of the year! Oh, the pressure. 

As I was reading all of the very inspiring blog posts and magazine articles about making resolutions, I ran across this gem over at Green Plate Studios. Analiese writes "It’s so important for us, especially women, to remember that we are already powerful, whole, and worthy of love exactly as we are. Set the intentions. Set the resolutions. Set the goals. But don’t make them about fixing what’s wrong. There is nothing wrong with you. (Anyone who tells you otherwise? Probably trying to sell you something.) Focusing on what we see as flaws keeps us from enjoying real life, in all its messy and imperfect glory."

Often, I get caught up in the awful cycle of feeling like I'm not "enough": pretty enough, skinny enough, well dressed enough, you get the picture. But earlier this week, I ran across a photo of a friend who was announcing her pregnancy. She was posed informally with her husband and she just looked so beautiful in a natural, non-model way, and most importantly, she looked happy. That was what stuck out to me the most about the picture. Not her outfit, the location, the shade of lipstick - just her undeniable joy. And it made me realize that inner glow is more important than any external factor. I know I'll need reminding of this time and time again as the year progresses, but it really rang true with me this week. 

And that's why my "resolutions" are taken from the above Audrey Hepburn quote: to laugh as often as possible, love with an open heart, be strong when things are difficult, let my inner glow shine, and have a fresh start whenever I need it.

{Image via Pinterest}