For 2018, my words were challenge and growth. I turned 40 and really started to care less about what people think about me, which was stressful at first but ultimately has become refreshing. It’s nice to have tenure and age on my side for that. I only have so many years in my life, and it’s important that I do what I want with them.
In 2018, there were a lot of deaths of young and older people, some of whom were close to me or to my close friends. Aunt Sophie, Brandon, Barry, Esther, Don, and my mom’s co-workers, rest in peace. It was emotional, and I turned to vegetarianism as I did after my close friend Blair died in 2000. Thre is something meditative about changing what I put in my body and taking small steps to contribute to the world around me.
My words for 2019 are connection and kindness. I recently watched “Won’t You Be My Neighbor,” the documentary about Mr. Rogers, and I really connect to his philosophy and approach to life. I want to believe that looking at people with love and treating them with kindness can make a difference in the world.
2018 Goals and Updates
1. Reading: My goodreads goal is to read 24 books this year. I’m also planning to try reading according to some reading challenges. I’m planning to try the #readingwomen challenge and the book riot read harder challenge. My general reading goal for 2018 is to read what I want to read.
YES. I actually read 32 books this year, hooray sabbatical! I chose books that I wanted to read. I didn’t finish any of the challenges, but I enjoyed trying them, and plan to try again this year.
2. Crafting: I’m not going to try any specific crafting challenges for 2018, but my overall goals are to work on some lingering WIPs and to craft what I want to craft.
YES. I finished almost all of my sock WIPs this summer, started cross-stitching again, and crafted what I wanted to craft.
3. Journaling: Going along with crafting, I plan to write a lot more often. I want to try to write in my journal every day. I plan to bullet journal all year. I’m also planning to track some things like I did last year, including books and travel.
YES. I started getting into the fountain pen hobby, and I bought a Some Lines a Day Journal that I write in every day. I used my bullet journal to track and plan and set goals. I love handwriting and am working on balance with digital writing.
4. Meditation: Last year I finally got some kind of meditation practice going, and although I didn’t meditate every day, I did find meditation incredibly helpful. I would like to keep trying to meditate daily, and also learn more about meditation and what works for me this year.
SORT OF. I meditated occasionally and for blocks of time, and I took a meditation class online, but I definitely still need to work towards daily practice.
5. Health: I actually don’t do well making too many specific health goals. Mainly, I’d like to be more active in 2018 and find some ways to incorporate daily activity since I’m no longer walking to work.
SORT OF. On and off I had a yoga practice this year, but it was not very consistent.
6. Research: So since I will be on Sabbatical for 2018-2019, research goals are really important. My friends are doing one article or book chapter a week challenge, so I’d like to keep up with that, and one goal is to read more scholarship this year. I also would like to work on a publication. More broadly, I want to keep thinking about my place in the field and an ongoing, sustainable research agenda.
YES. Returning to this goal is nice because I did accomplish a lot. I submitted a publication with one of my students and revised it, which was a very energizing and joyous process. I kept up with the reading challenge periodically throughout the year. Most importantly, I figured out a new research project and some direction which I am hopeful about sustaining.
2019 Goals
- Morning Routine. This is an often goal of mine throughout the year to do certain things in the morning before I start my day. I’d really like it to be routine so I don’t forget or put it off. For now, the goal is four simple things: meditation, breakfast, planning, and getting dressed (an important sabbatical goal!)
- Cooking. Sabbatical has left me more time for cooking, and I’m loving it. I love using recipes and cookbooks, menu planning, and eating delicious homemade food. The goal is to use my cookbooks and plan the menu for meals each week.
- Reading. My goal is 2 books a month, and I’d love to do the Reading Women podcast challenge this year.
- Crafting. I’d really like to finish a cross-stitch project this year. I also want to craft ahead of time for the holidays. I want to get back into spinning. My main goal is to craft everyday, and track that crafting in my bullet journal. Subgoals are to watch and craft some more of knit stars classes, and keep cross-stitching and spinning.
- Research. I have one more semester of sabbatical, and I need to be productive. My main goal is to collect data and disseminate some preliminary analyses at conferences and perhaps a publication. I also plan to do the scholarship challenge that my friends are hosting again this year, to read one article/chapter a week.
- Family. We have some big family changes coming soon, and I’m pretty excited. It’s difficult to make goals when I don’t know what to expect, so I plan to make some goals as this evolve. I have the lofty goal of work-life balance, and I plan to institute family dinner as a thing this year (Darren and I already do this most nights).
What a wonderful list, Hannah!