Goals for a Change

I've been pondering what to make my goal/s for the this year.  I always have a list in mind, but I am liking the idea of a state of being, an attitude adjustment, or paradigm shift as I've read else where.

So here it goes.....

My words of the year perseverance and cheerful endurance. 

I'm borrowing the term spiritual fitness, I want to focus on the why I am a member this year instead of how to be a member of church.  I want to be excited again.  I want to attend the temple more frequently and go even if I drive the hour drive alone.  I want to be more intentional on my spirituality instead of only giving it what is left over at the end of the day, which usually isn't much.

I realize that I endure.  I might even endure well, but this life is meant to have joy.  I have a lot to complain about.  Dakota's accident reminded me of all the things I have to be thankful for.  Even happy about.  I want to get a piece of my youthful optimism back.  I want my glass to go from half empty to half full.

 I love the quote in the picture.  I work hard.  I work hard everyday of the week on my job.  Daily, I get the emotional baggage of many children.  I have to cut through a lot of junk to be able to teach them how to read, why they should read, and not my favorite but parts of speech.  Have you ever tried to teach predicate nouns to a child whose family did not have water?  There is a lot to get through with this group of children.  It is easy to be angry and frustrated with them.  But, they need me to be a strong, stable adult who they can count on to be consistent.  They need me to teach them that fair is not always equal.  Fair is doing what is correct for the individual who might need to get to point B by a different route.  Sometimes I have to redo, redo, and did a mention redo my lessons to find another way to get to them.  Something that has worked the last four times I taught will not usually work this year.

I need to preservere through the growing pains of going from teen to young adult.  I will have a senior this year.  We will go through the emotional tugs and pulls at the heart while touring what college to attend for the one semester he can get in before a mission.  Watching to see if he will finally chose to go on a mission.  It is hard to watch your child make tough life choices.  Helping them develop a trust in the Lord, and realizing that most of their testimony is built on mine or my husbands.  Hoping and praying they will get their own...and remember what they already know.

Persevere cheerfully through trials.  Knowing they wouldn't be trials if it was already my strength.  Relishing in the wisdom gained at the end of the trial.  (I have learned more about myself since being released from Relief Society President, than when I was called, because I can see the forest for the trees now.)

To take on my medical condition of PCOS which induces diabetes in me.  Cysts that make it almost impossible to lose weight and is very discouraging emotionally.  I most of the time ignore it, but symptoms pop up now and then that remind me that ignoring is not the best solution.  I will have to preservere the weight loss troubles and do everything I can, including taking medicine that messes with my blood sugar levels and work with medical personnel to get everything normal, or as normal as it will be with a diagnosis like this. 

I like the idea of persevering to make enduring more cheerful.  I want to enjoy the last few moments I have with all my children under the roof.  I realize I'll always be their mother, but it will be different. 

So, here's to a more successful goal year!