Happy New Year, Blue Hens! I hope everyone has been having a great winter break so far; I know I have! From seeing old friends, to celebrating the holidays with family, from going to the movies, to exhausting my Netflix account, I have had a very relaxing and overly desired break. However, I am anxious to start back up next week for Winter Session as I will be taking a class every day, and with fondness I welcome back a stricter schedule in the coming weeks before starting spring semester.
While 2014 has just begun, 2013 is still visible in our rearview mirror. I may be in the minority here, but I am personally happy to see a new year begin. This past year was a memorable one. Over the last 365 days, I finished my first year of college, held my first internship, traveled to Disney World with my family (again), and saw some of my favorite artists in concert. However, with all of those good memories come bad memories in the forms of broken promises, mistakes, losses and tragedies. Yet, even with all of the unhappiness and sorrow we may feel looking back on 2013, we should not grieve, as so many people do. Instead, we should remember our lessons learned from these mistakes and tragedies and live out this next year in the memory of what happened in 2013.
When the ball drops to ring in a New Year, it is as though the weight we have carried the past year drops too. I welcome 2014 with open arms; with this New Year comes great hope and a promise for a better year. It’s a new book that is just waiting to be written. New friendships will be made and new adventures will be taken. New memories will occur and new experiences will happen. Just like Hilary Swank’s character from Garry Marshall’s New Year’s Eve says, “That’s what New Year’s is all about. Getting another chance, a chance to forgive, to do better, to do more, to give more, to love more, and to stop worrying about what if and start embracing what will be.” Don’t worry about making (and inevitably breaking) New Year’s resolutions and promises. Instead, worry about living in the memory of those who didn’t get the chance to see 2014. Try something new every week. Do a random act of kindness. Start a journal. Travel to a new place. Learn a language. Don’t let another year go by where you look back and have a list of regrets. We got a fresh start this week; don’t waste it!
Have a Happy 2014!
~Hannah Tattersall
