Goodbye 26!

“Maturity has more to do with what types of experiences you've had, and what you've learned from them, and less to do with how many birthdays you've celebrated.”  ~Unknown

In the final hours of 26, I can't help but wonder where the time went.  It's like it was just yesterday I was back in the Appointments hoping to avoid telling my earliest birthday moment with my work family surrounding me in Jim's Office.  I remember thinking how incredibly sad it was that this would be the last birthday memory with many of those people.  

Is it possible that it has been eight months since I stood outside of the Romney Building with Amy and Jessica, saying our final goodbyes to the office?  How I managed to finish writing my second book during those insanely long 4 1/2 months of unemployment or starting another job the day after Easter outside of the Governor's Office.  

I have to admit that this year was a little different for me, but I find that maybe different and pushed a little out of my element is what I needed.  Not all of it has been great or something that I would wish on someone else, but situations that will now make me think twice.  Like driving after it has taken me more than an hour to scrape the snow and ice off my car after a horrible snow storm or watching what I say to the people around me, when I know for a fact that they won't take my jokes as jokes, but disrespect.

In the next year, I would like to make a few changes.  Not really changing who I am, because that will never happen, but change how I do things.  Like eating better, know when to keep my comments to myself or working on my patience with people even when all I want to do is tell them to go somewhere.  Or putting a little more effort in my writing and posting on this more often.

I remember telling KT Mac that I wanted to stay 26 another year, but now that I think about it, I don't know what I was thinking.  Well, other than the fact that 27 is another year closer to 30.  Now, I think that I should consider 27 as year of new beginnings, a clean slate.

So, to my family, who put up with me day after day, good or bad, you are saints in my eyes.  To my friends, there are days when I don't know what I would do without you and consider you a blessing.

Here's to 27!