Years ago I adopted a tagline. It’s a philosophy I try to remind myself when life has me saying “I’ll get to that tomorrow”. That happens more often than I’d like to admit. Almost daily I catch myself convincing myself to “start tomorrow” or the beginning of next week or next month.

The tagline is a mantra I use to try and counter balance all that. It it .. “Today is a good day to start”. If I have an idea about something I want to try or do, why not start today? There are lots of obstacles, and there always will be. I have to ask myself if those are just excuses or are there legit blockers in my way.

Life is too short to wait. Tragedy can befall any of us at anytime and if we wait, we lose out. If you read this blog regularly you know I struggle with life balance. I have a lot of commitments and responsibilities. At times all that just overshadows the things I’ve wanted to pursue in my life. In the last year I’ve made some changes to start going more in the right direction.

People used to ask me what I do. You know, that social situation question when you meet new people. “What do you do?”. I always hated that question. You are defined by what you do and I always found myself gravitating toward explaining my job. After about 30 seconds, I realize that’s it. It’s what I do to make money that defined me and besides that fact, it’s extremely uninteresting for most people to listen to. I’m not bothered by the fact that it’s uninteresting.. it’s a means to one end, but it should not be the *only* end.

I haven’t really celebrated the success of being half way through getting my masters in writing. It’s hard to believe that this time last year I had not even started yet and was just getting ready to go to my first residency. Going back to school to pursue my personal passion was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. There were (and continue to be) lots of obstacles but I went for it.

I woke up one day and said to myself “what am I waiting for?”. That day was truly a good day to start. And it has been a great ride so far. Sometimes, however, when you are on a ride, you don’t have the best view to look at that and reflect on the impact. Those things come after.

Of course life is always crazy and I could never have predicted a year ago that I would meet such an amazing person and begin building a life together. I also could not have guessed what my employment situation would look like.

This time last year I had just started at a new company after taking 6 months off to reflect on my life. Now I’m on my second big contract and working more than I intended. The balancing act never ends. Sometimes I live day by day, being prepared for only one day at a time. That makes starting new things a challenge and it takes thought and specific intent/commitment.

That being said, I’m not waiting for January 1 to make resolutions. I’ve started already. I’m deciding to start now, putting more focus on the things that matter. My health, both mentally and physically, are at the top of that list.

I’m making better choices starting today (actually one of those started in November and the other one last week). I’m reducing my sugar intake. I’m not weighing myself. I’m going to make an appointment with the eye doctor today to get my eyes checked and another for a mammogram which I am overdue for. I’m going to contine to moderate my liquid intake (alcohol and coffee) and get back to basics where sleep and exercise are concerned. That starts today because..

Today isn’t just a good day to start – it’s a GREAT day to start!!

The Time is Now,

~Miss SugarCookie