Lucky number 13

Last night, after writing several letters of recommendations for students and reading a few dozen applications for admission, I perused Facebook and the many posts about what my friends were thankful for. It was nice to read the blessings each one of my friends encountered in 2012.

Babies being born, people getting married, friends graduating from graduate school, former students graduating from college, promotions, buying houses, and everything in between. It was nice.

I started the last year spending many hours with my niece in the NICU of Loma Linda University before her battle with life ended after five short weeks of life and one week before my birthday. It was probably one of he most painful feelings to endure and to try and support my sister and her husband through. It still hurts.  She is buried right next to my baby brother who also died as an infant.

Little joys throughout the year were pleasant and masked the pain. I ran my tenth and eleventh marathon and coached another thirty-seven runners to the finish line of the LA marathon. I finally finished my substance abuse counseling certification program. I earned the SRLA Star Award for a blog I wrote about the program and my commitment to the students.

I watched my high school BFF, former roommate and party partner, be married to a great man.

I rang in 2012 with another BFF and his wife and then jumped for joy when they were with child and delivered a healthy baby girl nine months later.

Good things happened to people in my circles.

This year, I do plan to pursue additional training in the field of counseling. I will run another marathon. I will train more teenagers to complete a marathon. I will finish my seventh year as a school counselor. I will not join a gym in January or February. I will continue to incorporate Crossfit into my workout/marathon training routine. I may even sign up again for the box down the street from my house. I will try new recipes and share them with the five people that read my blog regularly. I will make some home improvements (or maybe pay people to do them).  I plan to read more and catch up on novels I "should" read and others that I want to read. I will pay off my car and be nearly completely paid off with my debt (sans school loans).

Perhaps new prospects are looming in my professional and personal life too.

2013 will be my year. Lucky number 13.



In the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years. 
Abraham Lincoln