It’s been a long time since I added anything to this blog – 363 days to be precise.  I haven’t read what I wrote last January.  I’m certain it was full of good intentions, resolutions and plans.  I’m equally certain I achieved none of it and I don’t need to remind myself of that.

How was 2019 for you?  My year was full of ups and downs.  The ups were fabulous and – on a good day – I know how fortunate I am.  Unfortunately it feels like I had more downs than ups, and that has cast a cloud over the whole year.  I don’t want to dwell on it, I’d rather look forward.  But that puts me in a bit of a quandry.

I want to be positive about the new year.  It is full of shiny new days, with the prospect of new adventures, of endless possibilities.  The places I could go and the things I could do – maybe I should make a list.  On the other hand, 2020 could be full of tripping hazards and pitfalls, missed opportunities and failure.  Do I really want to set myself up for that.  It’s easy enough to feel disappointed in myself without giving myself a tick list I’ll never match up to.

So, this year I have made a conscious decision NOT to make any resolutions that have firm targets attached.  I’m not going to plan to walk a certain number of steps each day or to lose a particular amount of weight each month.  There will be no word count targets, no forcing myself to write a certain number of times every week, no promises to keep this blog up to date.  All of those things would be nice, but I know how unlikely it is that I would keep them.  Instead I am making just a few, more general, suggestions which I hope will increase the number of ‘ups’ I experience in the next few months.

1. Try to be kind.  It’s not always easy, but this world needs more kindness and I will try not to add to the noisy, negative and nasty.
2. Try not to shut myself away.  Not responding to emails, Facebook messages, Tweets, invitations, etc is too easy.  Ignoring people who love me is not kind – not to them and not to me.
3. Try to do one positive thing each day.  It may be a domestic task that makes our home a more pleasant place to be.  It may be something for my own physical, mental or emotional wellbeing.  It doesn’t have to be big – just something I can look back on at bedtime and think – I did that.

There is one thing I have already started to do which will help me with all three of these suggestions.  On Facebook I found a group called Postcards of Kindness where members of the public write postcards and send them to the residents of residential care homes and dementia groups.  It is not a huge commitment in terms of time, energy, effort or cash but, from the comments I see posted, it makes a huge difference to the people who receive the cards.  Reading and sharing the postcards encourages discussion and combats loneliness.  Many homes use them to make displays – a colourful addition to some rather institutional-looking walls.  Why not give it a go?

I don’t know what you have planned for 2020, but whatever it is, be kind.  Especially, be kind to yourself.  You’re worth it.