It's never too early to start thinking about New Years Resolutions...and if I can think about them now, why do I have to wait until January 1st to act on them? I think exercising your soul is right up there with exercising your body...after all, the former is what needs to be in good shape when I die....or so I believe. And, admittedly, I'm not very good at exercising my body or my soul. So one of my resolutions is to find ways I can improve. How can I be a better person? The list is long...but I had to start somewhere.
They say that your sister is your best friend....and I'm happy to say this rings true for my sister and me. From a young age we shared many things....red hair, freckles, subsequent sunburns, clothes (much to her chagrin), barbies, dress up clothes, and an affinity for performance. I always thought we were best described through this song. (A fitting description, I might add). The actual scene from the movie is so much better, but youtube didn't deliver so....guess you'll just have to watch it at Christmas time!! You'll thank me later. After spending some quality time with my sister this past weekend wedding dress shopping (insert EEK! Her visit also accounts for my 9 day blog hiatus), I got to thinking about what makes a sisterly dynamic great. For us, we talk often, we're honest with each other, and we're forgiving of each other's flaws and bad habits.
I'm a believer that while your sister can be your best friend, your best friends can also be your sisters. Each of us is connected somehow, even if simply on the base level of our anatomical bond of gender. We each know what it's like to be a female. Past that, we're admittedly entirely unique, from the red, blonde, brown, black, grey, and maybe the occasional pink and purple heads. And still further we differ with emotional attachments, skills, education, family lifestyle, life experience, cultural paradigm. There is one thing, though, as a female, that I just can't escape. The gossip ring. You may also know it as the grapevine, small talk, meddling, chitter chatter, pick-a-little-talk-a-little, telephone, prattle, the dirty laundry, and hearsay for the elitist crowd (ba dum CHA). It's not the first time I've referenced my Achilles heel for gossip. Almost every circus in which I travel, there is a gossip ring: school Moms, work girls, my friends, my family, at the gym (well...the few times I've been anyway), even in my church I'm ashamed to say. And who can forget the world of digital gossip invited by social networking?? That's a lot of tongue wagging.
As I did some self reflection, I became a little discouraged. Girls, we're witches sometimes! And that's not even my word of choice....but I do try to keep my blog PG. I thought of all the ways in which I have initiated or participated in criticizing my fellow women and I began to feel downright awful. No one deserves my judgment, my small-minded opinion. I don't care what she's done to me, or how she's behaved in front of me. And truth be told; more often than not I issue critiques on people I don't even know about things that don't even matter; hair, clothes, makeup, shoes. The fact is, if we are so different from each other, than we should let ourselves BE different from each other without the footnotes and asterisks. I can't control what those around me will do or say, but I can certainly make a conscious choice to say kind things...or...if I don't have anything nice to say, I just won't say anything at all. An oldie, but a goodie.
So, that's my resolution. Since 2011 is getting a little long in the tooth, I'll call it my Old Year's Resolution....for New Wednesday! Footloose and Gossip Free.
And...in case you're wondering...I did find a wedding dress :) It's beautiful and perfectly me :)
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