A new year is finally here! New beginnings, new expectations or just a new nothing?
According to Wikipedia:
”A New Year’s resolution is a tradition, most common in the Western Hemisphere but also found in the Eastern Hemisphere, in which a person makes a promise to do an act of self-improvement or something slightly nice, such as opening doors for people beginning from New Year’s Day”
So do I believe in New Year’s Resolutions? My answer would have to be….not really.
Over the years, I’ve tried to make several promises. Besides the usual ”try to work out more” I’ve considered more creative options. One year it was to be more spontaneous and another year it was to be more organized. It proves to me that it is so important to balance your life out and that is what I ultimately strive for.
In hindsight, 2014 was not a spectacular year. No major life events took place.
No sudden career change, moving house or unexpected incidents. All in all, the year of 2014 was like a slow and lazy Sunday. Not much going on, but a lot of time for contemplation.
I turned 30 and threw a modest bash including cocktails, pinxos and involving my guests in a silly dance to the The bird is the word. The next day we had family dinner with something as unusual as my parents seated at the same dinner table. I slowly accepted that I went from a 20-something to a 30-everything. It is always calm in the midst of the storm and once I reached 30 all my worries disappeared.
Summer was awesome, for a fact.Enjoying hot summer days, going to the beach, roller skating and hanging out in the park. Going for a walk in the middle of the night and watching sunrise over the lake Vättern was also a pleasant experience.
I travelled to the USA and Lisbon, both trips were great. I remember meeting a lady in a second-hand bookstore in Portland, telling me that she went there every year to buy tons of books. I remember eating great Peruvian food and realizing some things in the American movies are not only stereotypes. Especially after riding public buses.
Did I try something new this year? I went to boxing sessions, tried acro yoga, horseback-riding, started making smoothies and had dinner in Ködbyen in Copenhagen.
The band Haim is in my opinion responsible for the best album of the year (technically launched in 2013). They sound like a fresh and new Fleetwood Mac with rocking tunes and engaging lyrics. It is very rare these days to listen to a full album and appreciate every song. Funnily enough I didn’t attend a major concert, but two good ones would have to be Lilla Namo at Babel and a spontaneous reggae concert in Pet Sounds Bar in Stockholm. Stockholm, to which I went three times this fall. Must be world record for me!
While I’m in that departement, one of my favorite movies of the year was Prisoners starring Jake Gyllenhall. The movie was hardcore realism, and contained some intense scenes. The movie Turist by Swedish director Ruben Östlund is also a must see, with an awkwardly umcomfortable relationship put on display.
Most of all, 2014 was when I found my way back to creativity again.To me, creativity is like a butterfly. It can’t be caught easily but it is hovering above your head, waiting to be seen. You can only hold it for a short while, it needs to be free and get some air underneath its wings. Excuse my sappy analogy.
So now when the new year has arrived, all I can say to myself is `”keep up the good work” with an extra touch of awesomeness. Maybe also attend the gym more and hold the door for old people.