Today is the first day, of the rest of my days.

2012. According to the Mayans, the year the world will end. Come what may in 2012, it is a beginning for me, not an end.

Because my birthday falls in mid-December, the New Year has always held a special place in my heart. I look at it as a fresh beginning all around. The beginning of a new year, a new stage in life, another chance to make a change, and make a difference. I made a lot of life progress in 2011, and I don’t look to the past with ill will or malice, but I am excited for 2012. 2011 found in me the courage to make a major life change, with a career change that took a major leap of faith. Financially, it was a scary, scary move. Personally and professionally, it was absolutely right.

I took a stand in 2011, and demanded to find a career path that felt right to me. Something that combined my love of people, my love of helping, and my need to be able to support myself and my future family financially. The spiritual liberation that came with that transition was something that I never could have anticipated. Even with the additional financial stress of taking a base pay cut, the added value to my life was unparalleled. I felt free for the first time in my life; happy to go in to work, happy when I get home from work, and happier with life overall.

2012 marks another milestone, the year that I take my life back from 26 years of excuses, bad habits, and laziness. It is the year that I take my life back from my old self, in order to allow the new, happy, confident person who has emerged to enjoy her next 26 years more fully than my old self ever could have. 2012 is the year that I establish healthier habits in mind, body, and soul. 2012 is the year to tackle my demons, and begin the rest of my life.

What does that mean for this blog? I’m not sure yet. It’s definitely not a journey that I am ready to share with everyone, but I think that it is important for me to catalog this transformation. Maybe someday I’ll have the courage to not only face my demons, but also to share them with the world. For now, I’ll be content knowing that I’m holding myself accountable by putting my thoughts into words, and my words into actions. You can lie to anybody, but you can’t lie to yourself.

So cheers to 2012. The first day, of all the rest of my days. And should you stumble upon my journey, cheers to you and yours.

Every wall is a door. -Ralph Waldo Emerson