Reflecting On The Upcoming Year

My reflections on goals and mission for the upcoming year (and years) continues apace.

One thing that has come out of this reflection to date is that more than likely the direction is very different from what I had expected.

The primary focus (personally, at least) is really for 2018. I want to go train in Japan.  That, of course, takes money:  money to fly, money to train (not all that much really).  But a concentrated effort to save is what will be required - and concentrated effort to improve my iai (and Japanese) and the physical fitness to support the training.

Which itself introduces other implications.  Time and money have to go towards those, which means time and money will probably fall away from other things.  As I have thought it through, it probably means my Highland Athletics will be less this year than years past.  And possibly a year skipped doing an Obstacle Run.

As I have continued to think, my world has contracted as well.  It started with Facebook but has been slowly extending itself towards anything resembling current events. . I am spending less and less time there now than in times past; quite likely once we get past the inauguration it will drop off entirely.

We have become firmly ensconced in our church at this moment, so more time will be spent in service and growth (as it should be).

With our managed budget and more of inward focus, items of the house now go on a list and projects will need to be addressed.  Some of these I cannot do myself; others, simply because of cost, I will have to figure out for myself.

Financially we are beginning to migrate to the point that college and retirement savings are becoming more relevant.  This means that spending on the whole will be a great deal more constrained and focused (plus going to Japan - did I mention that?).

In a word (if there is such a thing for this) I foresee next year and possibly the years beyond as becoming more focused and centered around a much smaller group of ongoing events.

Does it mean that all new things are now removed from consideration? Of course not.  I still have plenty of things I want to learn and, as a generalist, I really cannot focus on just one thing.  But the inter-relationship of those things are becoming more critical and the ability to sustain things are not related to the core is becoming a great deal more difficult.  Simply put, the time and money are not there.

I will be honest:  unburdening myself from the sense of having to finish books and maintain my website has been one of the most freeing activities I have felt of late.  My boundaries of what I am able to do and consider have expanded a great deal. This, combined with the change in jobs and commute time, has made a significant change in my life - the first one in almost seven years.  I sense that more of this is coming.

It has been a good period of reflection. And it is likely that things will change yet again before the end of the month.  But things are changing.  I feel it in my bones as clearly as I can see the leaves falling from the trees.