Mine didn't really start on January 1. I was in the midst of moving from Maryland to Pennsylvania. It wasn't a move I necessarily wanted to make. My landlord decided to sell the home I had been renting for the last 6 1/2 years. He gave us very little notice, and I found out about it on the last day of my finals. So, we talked to a friend who had a house he was looking to rent out, and we moved. Alan called it "moving hell" and that's exactly how it felt at the time.We didn't really finish moving, painting, cleaning, etc... until January 4. And, it'll take us some time to get completely settled.
I loved Maryland. I didn't want to leave it. Maryland had been very good to me, and I really considered it my home state. But, The Mystery had other plans, and She let me know in no uncertain terms that I was supposed to be here. First, one of my friends who lives close by up here, told me she was so excited that I was coming up here. She'd been feeling down and just knowing I was coming made her feel better. Then, my son's employer was able to transfer his job up to the city in which we're currently residing. From there, lots of other things began to fall into place.
I've moved a lot in my life. The house in Maryland was the longest place I'd ever lived, including childhood. It's most likely why I was dragging my feet in leaving it. My dog wasn't happy at all with leaving, and she's had a difficult time adjusting to a new "den". But, she's getting there, and life is getting better each day.
I was going to write up a post about lessons learned in 2013. In fact, I did, and had it set to post instead of this one, but I realized that it was just venting, and that I had accomplished that by simply writing it out (or typing, as the case may be). I learned two really important lessons overall. Mostly, I learned that I've allowed way too many people in my on and offline lives to cross boundaries and not be accountable for their actions. I am not fix-it girl nor am I the clean-up crew for other people's messes.
I also learned a lot about friendships and to trust my original instincts about people rather than giving them any benefit of the doubt. And, those were painful, but important lessons to learn. After what I went through, they've definitely taken hold.
I'm pretty sure that 2014 is going to be a very busy year, but in a very enriching and affirmative way.
So, I'm raising my glass of champagne to all of you and wishing you the very best of success and happiness in 2014 :)
Sláinte!