2016 is coming rapidly and isn’t stopping for anyone. Dang, 2015 flew by fast, and after reflecting on all that happened in one year I’m amazed by how short it seemed. So much has happened since last year. It’s bittersweet to wish 2015 farewell while awaiting 2016. The present is quickly becoming the past and will eventually just be faint memories pushed to the back of our minds.
I was sitting at Chick-fil-A for dinner, surrounded by a bunch of what seemed like high schoolers, and began to think of how envious of them I am. They don’t have a care in the world! Their biggest source of concern usually involves whether their crush reciprocates their feelings or why their best friend is angry and won’t talk to them, until two hours later when they’re holding hands and laughing together again.
Coming to college involves accepting a lot more responsibility and encountering slightly bigger problems. People already know exactly what they want to do with their life, who they want to marry, and have every single detail mapped out -- unlike me, who still contemplates on what to have for dinner every night. I don’t know what I want to do, or where I see myself in five years. After all, I am still a freshman. I do know that I want to enjoy life and make the most of it.
That’s why I love New Years! I feel like this is the holiday when everyone gathers together with new hopes and aspirations, hoping to say goodbye to all of last year's mistakes, and hello to the new year’s possibilities. This is the time people get to reinvent themselves and finally do the things they’ve longed to do for so long. This is the holiday when people can finally be courageous. You can finally gather up the strength to kiss that special someone at midnight, or tell somebody how you feel, or bury the hatchet and start anew with an old enemy, or get the courage to be the person you want to be! This is the day to stop thinking and start doing!
This year, especially for me, has been a year when I’ve wanted to do and be so many things, but got lazy or scared – but no more! This year my resolution is to be more courageous! No more sitting on the sidelines, or hiding in the crowd. I’ve realized, especially after this year flew by so fast, that life is way too short to have regrets. Life is way too short to be hiding from opportunity. And life is way too short to be living in fear.
This is the year to be nicer to people.
This is the year to be more open to meeting new people.
This is the year to do something I’m scared of.
This is the year to go on new, crazy adventures.
This is the year to make the first move instead of waiting on others.
This is the year to work harder.
This is the year to make more challenging goals.
This is the year to smile more.
This is the year to make a grand gesture to somebody.
This is the year to do the things I love.
This is the year to live with courage.
I’ve always loved the quote from the movie, "We Bought A Zoo."
"All you need is 20 seconds of insane courage and I promise you something amazing will come out of it.”
This is the year for insane courage. This is the year to go out and, as Shia LaBeouf would say, “JUST DO IT!”
