2018 Resolutions

This week I finally caved and decorated my room to match the feeling of the house - which is incredibly Christmassy - there is now a fibre optic tree on my desk, and multicoloured lights in my windows. The whole thing is very early 2000s and seasonal. So as the year comes to an end of course I have to talk about 2018 - what I want from it and what I’d like to do more of. I rarely make resolutions in the sense of changing my entire life outlook, I like to think I am slowly getting there with who I am as a person, and I don’t need to restart every January 1st. 

But then I had a very long and deep chat with some very good friends over a good breakfast (and then later in a Wok-To-Go), about resolutions and things we wanted to do next year so I was forced to think about it, and actually got quite into it. I don’t love the idea that I have to radically change my life every year but there are of course things that I’d like to be different by this time next year.

I also love a goal - so here are some more gentle and easily-achievable aims for 2018. 

• Less meat (the environment), less dairy (I’m intolerant) and more water (everyone should). 
• Keep taking your makeup off every night - this is going great so far, but it never hurts to keep it on the list. 
• Go outside every day - this will hopefully be easier eventually - whilst I’m still working from home in the dead of winter though, it needs a bit more focus and attention. 
• Do more yoga - even if it’s just five minutes in the morning, because it is so good for me and my joints and I don’t know why I find it so easy to not do something I enjoy so much. 
• Take plenty of photos, of other people, of things, of yourself - keep a nice record of things but also for me to enjoy enjoying how I look and not feeling bad about it most of the time. 
• If you won’t think of yourself, think of your skin - even though I could stress and worry myself to death every day, it would probably be more useful to stop doing that. Even if I can’t quite do it because I want to take care of myself emotionally, it is much easier for me to see the effects it has on my body, and vain as it may sound, it’s easier for me to focus on those sometimes than any kind of inner peace. 
• Read 30 books - I’ve even got a goodreads account and already started using it to get into the swing of things before I set myself a yearly goal of 30 books throughout the year. 
• Get rid of the trash - I know what I’m referring to and it’s about not putting up with things that have no place in my life in the new year, not waiting for them to get better, just plain getting rid of sources of stress in my life. Something I’ve already done in 2017 and I’m happy to report worked so well that I’m going to keep on doing it in 2018. 
• Stop explaining myself - I want to get better at saying ‘sorry, I just really don’t want to do that’ or ‘sorry, I’m too busy’ without feeling the need to bend over backwards to do everything that everyone asks me to. 

They might feel not very important, or deep, or life-changing, but I like them, I like that I can see myself doing them without too much effort but still being happy I did. I like that they’re about taking care of myself through being discerning about how I spend my time and energy, and I love that I’ll be taking care of myself on a number of different levels if I stick to them.

*****

I’m on Twitter - @clairegillesp - where lockdown is still active as ever but I’m also tweeting a lot about things I’d like to do differently next year.
I’m on Instagram - clairegillesp - where winter and Christmassy photos are everywhere.
I saw Star Wars, it was brilliant I have no other feelings about it that you’d thank me for so just go see it. I am also reading Journalism by Joe Sacco and The Vanity Fair Diaries by Tina Brown, and I bought myself the Faber & Faber Poetry Diary 2018 - so every week I get a new poem to go along with my messy handwriting which is nice.

xx