This Year I Resolve To...

My horoscope for today talked about focusing on the future and new opportunities over the next twelve months. It suggested writing a letter to myself to be read a year from now about what I'd like the new year to bring.

So here goes.

Dear Lenore,

I hope this past year has brought you better things than the previous year. I hope you've been able to get back into the working world in a way that allows you to work around your fatigue and not have to give up the comforts that come with having a regular paycheck.

I hope you've cut out the bad feelings or anything that was making you feel bad is no longer doing so. I hope you've been able to move on with your life and let others you've been disappointed by go on with theirs and wished them luck. Maybe someday they will come back to you and want to be the kind of people you need in your life. In the meantime, you know you've always had one person in your life who never lets you down - you.

I hope you are happier now and have achieved everything you wanted to achieve this past year. Hopefully you're feeling good physically and have dropped some of the weight you wanted to lose:) I hope you've made some new friends or maybe reconnected with some old friends, and more importantly, family you had lost touch with. Hopefully everything is going well with all of them, and your relationships with them are good and strong.

I hope you got everything you needed this past year, and that your money troubles were eased.

I hope you are on track to becoming the person you want to be and living the life you want to live.

I know you wish the same things for everyone that you wish for yourself.

Happy New Year.

I think writing this letter has helped me sort out what needs changing in my life and it will help me to keep my resolutions this year. This was a good idea. I think everyone should do this New Year's letter.

My New Year's resolutions:

• Return to work in some capacity.



• Eat healthier.



• Continue working on my blog and finish my other projects.



• Be happier.



• Stick to my resolutions.

Finding Inner Peace

We talk a lot about peace. We all want to see world peace. During the holiday season, we often hear it said - "peace on earth and good will toward men".

But as mankind struggles to get along, it seems peace is nowhere to be found.

In general, we'd all like to live quiet, peaceful lives, but all the hustle and bustle of everyday life makes it difficult. We're always running around between home, school, work and errands and coping with work overload and stress.

Where can we find peace?

Peace begins within ourselves. Even though the world around us may not always be a peaceful place, we can achieve inner peace.



We can find inner peace by:




Getting rid of the turmoil in our minds. Throw away all that "mental garbage" you're lugging around - all the thoughts of things that didn't happen for you, all the worries over things you can't control, all the negative thoughts - just pitch it all.



Focus on the things you can control, the realities that you can make happen and the positive, self-affirming thoughts and beliefs you need to get there.

Wiping away anger and bitterness. We've all heard the expression, "I've made my peace with it." If there are people in your life that have angered you, try to reconcile with them. Sometimes you can't reconcile because the person who angered you has passed on. In that case, make your own peace with what happened by releasing yourself from the burden of carrying around that anger.

Don't be bitter over things that didn't go your way or if you didn't get something you wanted. Life doesn't always go the way we want. Focus on being positive and trust that at some point you'll find something else that will make you happy and things will go your way.




Seeking out calm. Stress rattles us and robs us of energy. It may not always be avoidable, but we can control our responses to stressful situations. Take a moment and stay calm. Don't give in to the urge to get worked up.

Slow down the pace and don't make life more hectic than it needs to be. Don't be a slave to your email and cell phone. Set them aside when you're off the clock and go for a quiet walk in the park or on the beach. Spend time taking it all in. Let the sound of the birds singing or the waves meeting the shore replace the cell phone ringing. Breathe deeply. Meditate.

Being happy with who we are. Sometimes we wish things were different. I wish I didn't have MS. I have made my peace with it though, by accepting that it is something about myself that I can't change. It doesn't take away from who I am as a person. It doesn't define me.

Being comfortable with ourselves gives us peace of mind and happiness in life. Accept what you can't change; change the things you can if you need to in order to be happier.

Treating ourselves and others well. Take care of yourself. Develop healthy habits and live well. Show kindness toward others. Give yourself credit for all the good things you do. Knowing that you are a good person and being good to others will help give you inner peace.

If you have peace within yourself, you can be a much happier person and get along better with the people around you. If everyone in the world could find inner peace, the world could be a much better place.

"Nothing can bring you peace but yourself." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Remembering My Grandma

Tomorrow is the twenty-sixth anniversary of my Grandma's passing. I have been thinking of her a lot lately, as I have been struggling with so many things in my life. I know if she were here she would help me, and I would feel so much better.

My Grandma was a very special person in my life.

She was, to me, the very essence of family. As devoted to her family as the day is long, Grandma always seemed to put all of us ahead of herself.

Grandma had a hard life in a lot of ways. She grew up in the Great Depression and later lost two of her children. But I remember she always had a positive attitude, and she was the most giving person I have ever known. She always helped my mother and I whenever we needed anything. I remember she used to babysit me when I was little. She'd carry me around over her shoulder singing "Sack of potatoes". I remember she always used to sing funny old songs.

As a child I liked to play with paper dolls, make up stories and draw pictures. Grandma always encouraged my imagination and creativity and said she liked my pictures (even though they were probably awful.) I used to love spending the night at Grandma's house. We'd watch TV, and I'd fall asleep on the couch. Then in the morning she'd make me Cream of Wheat. Later we'd laugh at my grandfather as he danced the polka around the living room.

My Grandma and I were very close. I felt like I could talk to her about anything. I remember when I got into that awkward puberty stage where you start to like boys and you want them to like you, and you start to worry about your looks. I remember Grandma told me to always keep a little smile on my face. I've had people comment about my smile and say they wonder what's behind it. It's more like who - Grandma.

I learned from my Grandma that family is the most important thing. I was a teenager when she died, and I remember the last time I saw her she was in the hospital, and I remember I just started crying, and I hugged her and said, "I love you so much." She said, "I know." I am so glad we had that special last moment together.

When we are children we have no concept of time moving forward. We are blissfully ignorant of the future and the inevitable adulthood that brings with it greater responsibilities and challenges that we have to deal with on our own.

Sometimes I wish I could go back and be in that time once again when I was just enjoying my childhood. When things were simpler and worries were few. When I had all of my family there for me and could not even imagine them not being there.

I'll always treasure my memories of my Grandma.