The Bigger Picture

The end of every year gives us a good excuse to look back on where we’ve been and contemplate where we want to go.  Have we lived up to our full potential?  Are we holding on to things that may be holding us back?  Is it time to think about repairing strained relationships or cutting ties all together?  Are we happy?  As we approach the final day of 2011, we are practically powerless to resist the temptation to ponder the bigger picture. 

For me personally, the past year has been one big reflection on both my current state of affairs and the direction I want to be heading in.  This year I let go of my plans and pretty much threw everything I thought I wanted out the window in hope of finding all the things I never knew I always wanted.  Ultimately, I had my highs and lows but I learned life is less about plotting and planning every moment and more about making it up as you go along.  There is no road map, instruction manual, or checklist to follow because we are meant to stray off course.  We are meant to find the unexpected. 

So as you look back on what 2011 was all about for you and think forward to what you want from 2012, I hope that whatever you decide to do, you will hold nothing back.  Don’t look back on 2011 and dwell on what you could have done, should have said, or would have been but remember all that this year actually was for you.   Moving forward, let life you take you where it is going to and have no regrets.  Remember that “what ifs” are only questions that you were too scared to take the risk to find out the answers to. 

“The only thing you live to regret are the risks you didn’t take.” – Unknown

1 Very Happy Holiday

Well we've come to the first day of Christmas and today, I want to say that the most important thing I wish for this Christmas is that everyone have a safe and happy holiday.  So here's to Christmas and one very happy holiday.  Oh and let's not forget one completed 12 days of Christmas task.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!!

2 Birthday Boys

When you think about on all the Christmas’ you’ve had in your life, can you really remember all the presents you got?  Most of the time it’s a blur of gift wrap filled with items that will be replaced the following year because you will outgrow them or styles will change.  At the time the gift was probably exactly what you wanted and seemed like the greatest thing in the world but ultimately it will be forgotten as time goes by.  However, in all the Christmas memories, there are those extra special gifts that you just can’t forget.

 28 years ago, I got a gift from my parents that’s been practically impossible to forget.  The truth is that if I try to forget it, my present will open it’s mouth and remind me of his presence.  If you haven’t guessed it already, all those Christmas’ ago, I got a baby brother.

This has been the most interesting present I’ve gotten for Christmas and there are times I wish I could find the receipt and see about an exchange but ultimately having my brother has been pretty fantastic.  It’s definitely not a bike, a fancy piece of jewelry, or the new “it” electronic item but the upside is that he keeps changing with the times making it almost impossible to outgrow him.

So on this 2^nd day of Christmas, when the world recognizes the birth of one great man, I get to pay tribute to the birth of another great person.  Without this Christmas gift 28 years ago, my life would never have been the same and I wouldn’t have had anyone to torture or blame things on growing up (not sure how much he enjoyed that!).  The truth is, no matter what our differences, he's the only brother I'll ever have and I'm lucky to have him.  When it comes down to it, it will alway be us agains the world and i'm pretty glad he's on my team.   So happy birthday to two people today who were destined to do great things!

3 Weddings

2012 is the year of the wedding for me.  No you won’t see me in the big white dress just yet but rather I will be taking on Katherine Heigl’s role in the sequel to 27 dresses.  Ok maybe it’s not that drastic but today, on the 3^rd day of Christmas, as I head out to shop for a bridesmaid dress for wedding #2, I think it is only fitting to devote my post to my upcoming 3 wedding year.

Next year I have three friends getting married and all three have asked me to stand up with them as they do it.  When you are asked to be in a bridal party, someone is saying that they value you and their relationship with you so much so that they want you to take a major role in what will definitely one of the biggest days of their lives.  I can’t imagine any other gesture paying a higher tribute to you as a friend.  All the planning will definitely keep me busy over the next year and it’s a huge financial commitment but at the end of the day, I am so excited and honored that they chose me for their wedding parties. 

With each person I have a very different relationship and I know that each of their weddings will be unique and special in its own way.  I will go from Teresa’s classy country club event preceded by a big hat wearing Kentucky Derby Bachelorette get-a-way, to Col’s trendy downtown affair with a Miami Beach Bachelorette Fiesta, to Kate’s sweet Suburban wedding and a beach blast Bachelorette.  I think come September when it’s all over, I will not think about all the hours I gave up planning things or the money I spent, but rather I will look back on all the wonderful experiences I had and memories I’ve made with someone my closest friends.  And whenever I start to lose my sanity along the way, I know that Erin will be the amazing friend she has always been and talk me down off the ledge J 

So on this 3^rd day of Christmas, here’s to 3 really exciting occasions next year, 3 fun destination bachelorette trips, and 3 sets of amazing memories with not only the 3 brides and their 3 grooms but with many more of my favorite people in the world.  And of course we’ll do it all in the same year that we hit the big 3-0 so it looks like 3 might be my lucky number in 2012!

4 Years Working

Since graduating college, I’ve jumped around a little bit job wise.  I started working for a fitness facility selling programs, then went on to do public relations for a large scale venue management company, which led me to my current position as a meeting planner.  Today, on the 4^th day of Christmas, I want to recognize 4 exciting years at my job.

When I first interviewed for my current position, I left the building thinking that this was my dream job and I had to get.   After I got it, I quickly realized that there would be times when the dream would be more like a nightmare but overall, the job has been good to me.  I started this position right before the economy hit its downward spiral and I have managed to keep it thus far which today, is a big deal.

For me, 4 years is a long time to be at job, especially if you averaged just 2 years at your previous places of employment.  In fact, it’s a long time to do anything.  It’s longer than any romantic relationship I’ve ever had, more time then I’ve lived in any one apartment, and the same amount of time I spent in high school or college.  Sure I may have this job or another one for 10, 15, or 20 years and this milestone will look like nothing in comparison but right now 4 years is a significant chuck of time in my life.

So this Christmas, I’m happy to have a job, especially this one.  I have more responsibility than I would have if I were with a bigger company, which means I learn more and am involved in a greater variety of things.  The people I work with are amazing and have become friends over the years.  I also get to travel around the country to some really fabulous places, which has been the most rewarding perk of the gig.  Of course this isn’t where I want my career journey to end, but it’s a really great place to stop along the way to my ultimate professional goal.  And being there for 4 years, also gets me an extra 4 days off next year, which will go a long way towards making 2012 a great one.  But right now, on the 4^th day of Christmas, I am going to enjoy the 4 day weekend that started when I left the office this evening and that’s definitely something to be thankful 4 J   

5 Dollars

Last week, I went out to dinner with my boss and the two ladies who work in my department for a little holiday celebration.  Since my boss is not from the area, we decided to take her out to a town about 30 minutes from our office.  This particular area is great to walk around and has a lot of wonderful restaurant choices so it sounded the like the perfect idea.  We even thought ahead and got a restaurant recommendation.  It was all going smoothly, until…

Our perfect night began to derail when we realized the cute little town that we thought we would get to walk around was closed.  Even at the height of the Christmas shopping season, all the shops were shut down by the time we got there at 7:30pm.  Ok well the Gap was open but that wasn’t quite what we were looking for.  Then when we got to the restaurant, we realized that it was a BYOB and we were missing our own B.  As we walked around checking out other menus for different restaurants, we had a hard time finding anything that seemed as appealing as our first choice.  Finally when we were leaving a sushi bar we had considered going to, we decided to ask two ladies standing outside of that restaurant for their advice on where to go.  Turns out they were from the area and had lots of great suggestions for us and right at the top of their list was the BYOB that we had originally wanted to go to. 

When we told them that that particular restaurant was where we wanted to go in the first place, they insisted that we had to go there and gave us directions to a liquor store within walking distance.  However, when we got to the liquor store, it was closed.  This whole evening had gone from great idea to complete disaster in just about an hour. 

After striking out at the liquor store, we started walking again in search of a place to have dinner.  As we waited at a cross walk to cross the street, we ran into the two ladies who had given us directions to the liquor store.  They were in their car at the red light and yelled out to us asking if we got our wine.  We told them the store was closed.  They yelled back us to go to the restaurant and they would bring us some wine.  To be honest, I thought they were crazy!  No one would really go buy wine for a group of strangers and deliver it to them just so that someone could eat at particular restaurant.  That just doesn’t happen in reality.  20 minutes later, we were sitting in the BYOB with two bottles of wine at our table.

The best part of the story is that when these two strangers showed up to deliver the bottles to us, they wouldn’t take a dime.  They simply said just enjoy it and pay it forward.  I spent the rest of the night thinking "did that just really happen" and for the past few days, I’ve really been looking for a way to pay that simple act of kindness forward.  So far I haven’t come up with anything but the other day I saw a news story on the Salvation Army and how their holiday collection effort was where they generated the majority of their funds for the whole year.  Today when I walked in the mall, there was a gentleman outside the door with his bell and red bucket collecting money for the organization.  Normally I would give the change in my pocket or a dollar if I happened to have one but today, I felt like this was maybe my opportunity to pay it forward.  So I dug deep in my pockets, pulled out my last 5 dollars and dropped it into the bucket outside the mall.

So on the 5^th day of Christmas, I gave the last 5 dollars I had on me to someone who needed it more than I did.  I could have used that money for a latte at Starbucks, lunch out, or a hundred other things but I think I spent the money in the best way possible.  Christmas is supposed to be about the giving.  It doesn’t matter how much you give, but the thought you put behind what you give.  Yes it really is the thought that counts.  Sure there are a million big things that I could have done to help humanity and pay it forward but at the end of the day, the little things are needed just as much as the big things. At the time of year where we are all so focused on what we want and we will get, it's extremely important that don’t lose sight of the giving part of the holidays.

6 Evolving Friendships

When I was in grade school, I met my best friend Amy.  Through grade school, high school, college, and even the sorority, we did it all together.  I don’t think I would have survived it all without her. 

When we got to our junior high years, Amy and Shannon started to become closer friends.  At that point in our lives, Shannon hated me.  She really tried hard to make life difficult for me for some reason but as we got deeper into high school, somehow the animosity between us faded leaving behind a friendship between two people who probably had more in common than they ever would have thought.

In high school, Amy met Brad at an after school job.  Brad, while keeping true to the old saying that boys only tease the girls they secretly like, started his relationship with Amy by throwing pennies at her.  Over their high school years and into college, they became great friends who were obviously perfect for each other but for some reason they just couldn’t get it together and get together.

Just as I was Amy’s sidekick, with Brad came Brent.  The two of them were so a like at times it was scary but I guess that’s why they were best friends.  That was then…

Today as I look back on where we’ve all been, it’s hard to believe how far we have come.  I don’t keep in touch with a lot of people from high school.  To be honest, that period of my life often seems like it was another lifetime but when it comes to Amy, Shannon, Brad, and Brent and all that we’ve been through as a group, I couldn’t imagine my life without them in it.  As the years went on, the group and its members evolved.  Brad finally got the girl and in 2009, Amy and Brad made it official as Shannon, Brent and I all stood beside them at their wedding. 

Old friends are the people who have known you through it all.  They know your most embarrassing moments and your deepest, darkest secrets.  They understand where you’re from and where you’ve been.  They are as much home to you as the house you grew up in.  They are a walking, talking reminder of your history, which can prove to be both good and bad.  But most importantly, they are there when it counts and if your old friends aren’t there for you, then I’m sorry but extremely glad that mine are.  And so that’s the story of my four long time, hometown friends.  Oh wait, but today is the sixth day of Christmas…

Just like with everything in life, friendships evolve.  Brent started dating Steph and she fit into the group so perfectly it was like she had been there from the beginning.  Then there came the best member of the bunch.  Amy and Brad welcomed Baby Tyler to the world in 2010.  Even though he's just a child, I think he's impacted this group more than any of us even realize and he's as much a part of it as all of us are.  And that brought my friend count to six. 

Today on the 6^th day of Christmas, I am extremely grateful to have these 6 people in my life because they each hold a special place in my heart.   Sure over the years we will probably expand further and continue to grow as people but I’m fairly confident we will all do it together.  This Christmas, I say embrace the change.  Things can’t stay the same forever but just because they evolve, doesn’t mean that it is a bad thing.  I’m extremely grateful for the friendships that I have developed with each of these people and thankful that they continue to have me as a part of their lives.  So on this 6^th day of Christmas, here’s to the six people that constantly remind me of who I used to be and where I’ve been even as we all move forward with our lives.