Holiday Heart: Looking Back While Preparing

I can't believe that Christmas is in just two days. And I'll be honest with you, I'm not ready at all. And when I say I'm not ready, it isn't in the buying of gift sense, it is in the mindset. I do have 3 gifts still to buy, but I don't need them until the end of the week, when crowds are less volatile, and then they are not hard to find gifts at that. 

I'm finding that as I grow older, Christmas becomes less. Especially the longer I remain single and without a family of my own. It is hard to sit back and watch others enjoy being parents and grandparents, and even great-grandparents, while I sit back and wonder if I'll even have the chance to have a significant other to continue to grow old with at some point in my senior years. Especially now that I've entered the second act of life. 

But then I have to remind myself that we, both men and women, don't need a significant other in our lives in order to celebrate or enjoy life. There are so many things in life that are meant to be seen and experienced, regardless of our marital status. So, I have decided to start looking at 2019 as a year to, not only rebuild, but to experience.

So, I decided to share some of the things that I plan to start doing and experiencing with you, my readership:

Travel

One of the ways I plan to experience is in traveling. And I am planning on being a bit quirky in the way I want to execute that plan. My car is to be paid off in 2019, so the next step is to purchase a retro travel trailer so I can begin traveling this great land and experience what it has to offer. I grew up in a family that camped a lot. Mostly due to the large number of us in the extended family, but the experience was something I would never trade! And my plan is to take my mother on a few trips, as well as a few of my friends.

The other part of that is to also finally travel to Europe. I had the opportunity while I was in college, but I didn't trust that the funding was coming through when it was, and pulled out. The funding came through the next day, and it was too late by then. So, my plan is to travel to the Amalfi Coast, then on to through various parts of Europe to learn more about my heritage.

Art

One thing that a lot of people don't know about me is that I am quite artistic, and not just in writing. I used to love to paint and draw, as well as play the piano. So, the other part is to rediscover my artistic self. I've already began to collect supplies, so it is a matter of just doing. I want to decorate my home with my own pieces of work.

But those are just a few items. There are more. Like publishing my own work poetry or writing. Performing onstage again. Just doing. I don't want to be indoors any longer. The injury is over, and it is time to start living life once again!