Words By Whittall

  I have an inventory of aspiration in my brain that grows longer and louder at this time of year. Write more! Drink less! Clean the house more often! Some years I have spoken the inventory out loud to friends, vowing over bottles of wine and deep-fried calamari to get healthy! Some years I have written my goals down on paper, or created intricate charts, dutifully logging on to the computer to put little check marks in columns made miniscule by their sheer number. This year the inventory will stay in my head. No declarations, save one. 2023 will be my year of Yes! Too often I say no without thinking – a sort of instinctual expectation setter. Too often I say no to great ideas or experiences because they are ju-u-ust outside my comfort zone. I say no out of fear or even laziness.   But, as the New Radicals sing, you get what you give. So, I’m going to give more yes in 2023. Yes, I will think before shrugging off questions. Yes, I will open myself to new ideas and experiences.