#reverb 10 - Day 9

The Butcher and the Vegetarian
@tea_austen

Prompt: Lesson learned. What was the best thing you learned about yourself this past year? And how will you apply that lesson going forward?

This year, I learned that I am resilient. When given a challenge, I confront it head on, with little or no hesitation. I jump right in with my to-do lists, and achieve my goals. Over the course of this eighteen months, I began & and graduated from graduate school, became engaged, got married, got the internship I had so badly wanted, and had a job offer from the same company. I have been blessed beyond measure during a time that was otherwise extermely challenging. I had many opportunities to wallow in depression and feel generally as though I wasn't going anywhere, but I was able to literally pull myself up and move forward with my life despite the swirl of darkness that could have engulfed me.

That being said, I was extremely hard on myself while achieving my goals, always questioning whether I had truly done my best. I've always been my own worst enemy, and almost purposely stress myself out so that I can perform at the levels which allow my to succed. I've realized that life is too short to stress out so much though, and I definitely hope within the new year to eliminate unnecessary stress in my life. I hope I can continue letting go of the small things to achieve the big things..but I also hope to "celebrate" the smaller succeses in life - a baked pie, a date with my husband, a well-hung picture, an organized room. When I'm so focused on the big things, I tend to push the smaller things out of the picture. I don't want to do that anymore. 2011 is all about being the best I can be - just like every year. I'd like to think that we're all a work in progress!