It goes without saying that for the past couple of years the common “clever” phrase that was used in the New Year was “New Year, New Me” and I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one that is getting tired of hearing that saying. Why do I need a new me? It seems to be a common thing in our society that once something gets “old” we replace it with something “New” – old iPhone, old appliances, old car… We get into a habit of replacing things instead of fixing them. Though it may not be that easy to just replace your body for a newer body for example, but we feel as though we need to set these high expectations for ourselves and then get disappointed when we can’t obtain it right away. After a little bit of maturing, I realized that I am not a perfect creature, and here’s my secret – I will never be. There is someone that already came and did that, and that’s not me. So instead of saying this New Years “New Year, New Me” I will say “New Year, Updated Me”.

I am not going to change, but rather update myself. I am finally growing into my skin and starting to realize who I am, and there are plenty of great things that I can appreciate about myself; however, there are things I need to fix as well. So I compiled a checklist of things that I would like to either do for the New Year or fix with myself.

• Fall in Love with My Body: My awesome sister made me realize that in order for me to be content with myself [body image], to be comfortable, or to even feel confident about myself I need to first fall in love with my body. It seems like an easy thing to do, but just like any relationship – it takes time to grow. I first had to take a look at myself, embrace that today – this is what I look like, and damn do I look good. “Look at that beard, that is a nice beard.” “Man, I’ve got some extra padding around my abs, the better to cuddle with, right?” Over the summer, I started the journey to fall in love with myself, but it seems like I am at that point where I “fell in like”, and I need to keep wooing myself. Once I made the decision to do this, I started to WANT to take care of myself: drink more water, stretch, workout, eat cleaner, and dress nicer. The reason that all of these things came easier is because when you love something you want to support it and take care of it to the best of your abilities, and fix anything that may be broken with it. (And just as an FYI, this has nothing to do with Narcissism).
• Listen to My Gut: So if you know me, you know that I am an extremely adventurous person and I love to do crazy and wonderful things. So for this year – I plan on doing at least 6 things that push me outside of my comfort zone. Whether it be trying some mysterious seafood, visiting a new area, or spontaneously acting, I plan on taking a leap of faith and fixing some fears.
• Strengthen My Mind: One of my favorite stories I read growing up was that a man was given an option to choose between three gifts. (1) He could have riches that no man can ever come to possess. (2) He would have power like no other, and dominion over the land. (3) Wisdom beyond his years, (not mistaken for knowledge). The man thought for a second and made his choice. He chose to go with the option of wisdom, for with the power of the mind, he can accomplish the other two. That is what I aspire to be, the man with the wisdom beyond my years. And in order to do that, I need to keep exercising my mind and learn new things every day. Pick up a new language, start a new hobby, and who knows maybe get certified in something.
• Open My Heart: This is going to be a year of love. It doesn’t necessarily mean with a significant other, but I mean giving love in everything I do. The greatest commandment is to love, and I want to be known as that person that always loves. I’m going to try and be a part of the big brother big sister program in Boston, and I can’t wait to be paired with my little brother. This past summer I went to New York not expecting anything from the people I would be staying with, and I woke up one day shook, because I realized that not only was I surrounding myself with wise talented people but also people who loved me! And I would like to be open for that again this year.
• Spread My Wings: Lastly, I want to Travel! Not only for the sites, or the excursions, but for the culture. I want to see the things people do that I can connect with and feel the strong human bond with someone who seems like they are worlds apart. I want to travel to learn. My goal this year is to go to Dia de los Muertos in Mexico City and see how the culture celebrates one of my favorite holidays.

So all in all, I plan my New Year Resolutions to be more than just New Year New Me, I want to expand on who I am, and fix the flaws that I notice. I am Darce, and this is my year because I am going to make it my year.