I feel like birthdays are a time of year that make us account for the year behind us and anticipate the year ahead. I am proud of what I accomplished last year, like passing level II of the CFA and PR'ing at my marathon. I had some wonderful experiences, like trips to Chicago for a girls weekend, the Pacific NW for Amber's wedding, and St. Louis for Nora's wedding, and I extended work trips to Austin and California and got to spend time with some of my favorite people and see more of the country. I met a great new guy who has definitely brought me much happiness. So there are lots of great things to look back on.
What I struggle with is looking at the year ahead of me. I know I need to stay positive and I will get behind this move, but I would be lying if I didn't acknowledge the fact that there are going to be a lot of struggles ahead of me, and that the upcoming move is casting a bit of a shadow over the celebration of my birthday. I know that the year to come will probably hand me more struggles than years past. I am up to the challenge, of course, but instead of having a sense of excitement about the year to come, it sort of feels a bit daunting and scary.
For now, I am trying to focus on the fun things that the year ahead of me will hold. Things like my Chicago marathon trip in the fall with some of my favorite fellow runners, trips to explore areas around Charlotte like Asheville, Charleston, Savannah, and Raleigh, trips to cities like New York, Boston, and Pittsburgh to visit URL-turned-IRL friends, and hopefully having this dang CFA experience behind me for GOOD!
So I definitely have quite a few adventures ahead of and lots of exploring to do - both inward exploration as this move will undoubtedly teach me a lot about myself, and exploration of news placess.
I have to believe Sigmund Freud's quote which I am sharing below. I have to believe that, despite all the inevitable struggles ahead, 32 is going to be a beautiful year.
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26 comments:
Happy Birthday - hope it's a great one!
Happy Birthday Lisa! I'm still hoping that 32 ends up being unexpectedly your favorite year ever :) Too optimistic? maybe haha. I'm looking forward to hopefully getting to see you at least twice in the next year :)
I love that quote! Have a happy happy birthday my friend! Even though you're struggling with the year ahead I hope it's your best yet! Have a great time tonight with Phil!
Happy Birthday! Sometimes we learn the most about ourselves when we force ourselves to do things we may not exactly want to do!
Happy birthday, Lisa! I hope you have a fab day and a great date night with Phil. :)
I know this upcoming move puts a damper on things and I'm sorry about that. Along with Kelly and Becky, I will be optimistic for you and just hope that this next year ends up being more amazing that you ever imagined it could!
Happy Birthday, Lisa.
I wish you happiness in this next year.
You remain in my prayers.
I pray that quote turns out to be so true! I do believe that struggles in life make us stonger and give us a chance to look within, which you stated in your blog! I hope you enjoy this birthday and remember this coming year as a wonderful experience!
Have a beautiful day, my beautiful daughter!
Happy happy birthday! I hope 32 is your best year ever :)
HAPPY birthday!!! Hope you have a fabulous year!!
Happy birthday! May the changes in your next year all be positive and exciting!
Happiest birthday to you!
Loved this clever way of labeling this: URL-turned-IRL friends
And wishing you a year of pleasant surprises.
I love that quote!!!
Happy Birthday friend. I hope you have the BEST day. Even though I know you have some uncertainty in your future I hope TODAY is wonderful :) XO
You will definitely look back at this time in your life as some of the more important defining years of your adulthood. Not just this move to Charlotte, but your commitment to passing the CFA exams, too.
It just occurred to me that you'd probably love running the Cooper River Bridge race in Charleston (I know a lot of people from Raleigh and Charlotte who head down there for the race). Looks like you'll just miss it this year ... but, maybe it should be put on your 2014 calendar?!?
http://www.bridgerun.com/
I send you the most wonderful birthday wishes and know you will have a perfect celebration. Your accomplishments are indeed vast this year and much to be proud of. I also know that with your spirit, you will make the most of the move, no matter how challenging it is. Happiest day to you -- and happy new year, too.
Happy birthday, Lisa! I love that quote! 32 might but a tough year but I have a feeling it will also be a great one!
Many happy returns, Lisa! I hope you had a great birthday and enjoyed your BBQ dinner date! I'm here with you; I'll be 32 in June, and I know this year will prove interesting and enlightening for me personally. Let me know when you're headed to Boston. I live up that way, and it would be great to grab a drink if we can!
i hope you had a great day!
Happy, happy birthday, friend! I hope you are having a wonderful birthday date and dinner as I type this!
Happy birthday, dear friend! Don't let the changes that will be happening this coming year distract from the fact that you have a lot going for you and that I think that you'll overcome all obstacles with stride!
I hope you had a wonderful night with Phil and always remember this birthday as something special.
<3
Happy Birthday Lisa ... Lisa it's your birthday!!! All the best to you in your 32nd year :-)
Happy Birthday Lady! Hope you had a great day! And I hope this next year is a good one even though you have to move. I honestly love Charleston! Go see Rainbow row if you haven't!
I sincerely hope I get to meet you when you're in the Pittsburgh area this time around!!
And Happy Birthday!!!
I can't wait to come and visit you and I love that quote.
I hope you had a fantastic birthday! Love you friend!
That quote is fabulous and oh so true. Now almost 8 months out from GA, I can appreciate the struggle and challenges that I survived. I'm still not ready to talk a whole lot about those struggles or physically go back to GA any time soon, but I can appreciate how those months change and tested me.
Happy happy belated! I have high hopes for this year to come also---there's a reason for this big life shift....it'll reveal itself in time! Lots of love for you this year!
Happy belated birthday! I am really glad that you can look back and see all the good things that have happened to you in the last year. I am sure next year at this time, you will do the same. I hope you had a wonderful day and that you enjoyed yourself immensely at Brasa!
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