Goodbye 2023, I’m not sorry to see the back of you. You’ve been an utter shit.
There’s this thing we do. We attach meaning to the reset of the calendar. There’s something symbolic about 01/01. It’s an opportunity to reset, restart, reconnect. I’m typically dismissive of things like this. I spent New Years Eve sat by myself in front of the TV watching re-runs of How I Met Your Mother. I didn’t even have the motivation to get drunk.
I decided that 2024 would be a reset.
Lets look back at 2023: Work has been awful. I’ve spent the last six months working from home. I’ve been isolated, beat down and defeated. I used to love my job. Last year was a real eye opener about what’s really important. Work is not it.
My relationship with Fran is on the rocks. I feel like we are two strangers living in the same house and raising two children. In moments of clarity I know that we would not be together still if we didn’t have the boys. I love them and I love being a Daddy to them. They are my pride, my reason for getting up in the morning. They have kept me grounded. In 2024 I need to work on reconnecting with Fran. I want to love her and be present in this relationship. This is going to take work.
Things have been difficult for my family. Ellis relapsed. His mental health has suffered and he has spent time back in hospital. The worry has been hard for all of us. Its been particularly tough on my parents. I’ll talk more about this another time, but its been a real stress factor for all of us.
2024 is a chance to change. How much of a cliche is that? A tiny ball of rock arbitrarily orbiting a superheated, ever-churning ball of gases, while its inhabitants mark the passing of time with fireworks and festivities. In the grand scheme of the universe, New Year’s celebrations are a fleeting moment on this speck of dust in the vast cosmic theatre and yet we attach so much meaning to it.
2024 is a chance to reconnect. With Fran, with friends, with family (I’ve been in touch with my brother that I hadn’t spoken to in years). Its a chance to reconnect with myself. To remember who I am and start living my best life. As Andy Dufresne, Tim Robbins’ character in Shawshank Redemption says, “It comes down to a simple choice, really. Get busy living or get busy dying.”
I choose to Get Busy Living. See you in 2024.
