Dear 2019,

I am so ready for you.

The past 12 months of 2018 have held some of the toughest, most brutal days that I can remember. And although 2018 may have knocked me down, you will be a year full of laughter, growth, progress, and happiness.

2019, you are a canvas that is begging to be painted on, earnestly waiting to become a beautiful masterpiece in which we are the artists. Perhaps that is the most appealing thing about you -- you are a blank slate that has not yet been characterized by the world and I have the power to dictate how this year goes.

The lessons I have learned from the last 365 days have molded me into a different person than I was a year ago, a person who is ready to take the challenges of 2019 and conquer them, not let them rule my mind and life. The worst days of 2018 are in the past, and they will be left there. 2019, we are starting anew, and I promise to look at you through fresh eyes -- open, willing, and eager to live one day at a time, bettering myself and everyone around me.

If 2018 has taught me anything, it is that life has controllables and uncontrollables. I have been forced to learn that these uncontrollables should not be allowed to dictate my attitude, that I have complete and total control over my outlook and the joy in which I face each day with. I promise to be resilient, to not let the past year control how I approach you, but instead, to let it teach me to bend (and sometimes break) yet still remain steadfast in joy, bliss, and gladness.

2019, I will not label you with those "resolutions" or "goals" that will be history come the third week of the year. Doing such a thing will result in the same thing each other year has been defined by: letdowns and a decrease in productivity. This year, I focus on progress -- becoming a better me. Each day there is something that I can improve on. One day that may be growing in sport or exercise, another it may making an improvement in what I eat, and some day may give me the opportunity to better my attitude.

2019, don't ever lose the sparkle that the new year's celebrations bring. Continue to lavish upon people joy, radiance, and hope. Let the feelings surrounding a new year never fade in the midst of the trials that you will bring.

2019, I thank you in advance for your challenges that will help shape me into the person that I want to become. Thank you for providing new opportunities, new questions, and new answers. I am so ready to meet you!