Seven days into 2023, Feliz año nuevo! Yes! I love a fresh start with renewed vision and hope.  I’ve been on the New Years Resolution track, pero, all of a sudden I thought, why don’t I review the year and see how I did with last year’s resolutions? Throughout the entire year, though I prayed for strength and perseverance,  I drop the resolutions, then pick them back up, then drop them again, hijole! Lots of wonderful things happened last year in between the “resolving” of resolutions. 

January 

The one repeated resolution that is always on my list is weight loss, ya se, ya se. In 2022 I proposed to lose 25 lbs. Por supuesto que I needed to lose more, pero I needed to keep it real. Then, I Went to our Winter Bible Conference and had a wonderful time with God and the people of God. I ate too much. Heavy sigh, like the kind that says my gut is too full and another heavy sigh that says, I’ll get back on track, mañana. 

I also resolved to write more, write better, write transparently and focus more on my manuscript. I started writing on my other blog for a little while and I maintained my weekly post on this blog.

February  

Love was in the air. Proverbs 18:22 had become so personal to my sons life: “The man who finds a wife finds a treasure and he receives favor from the Lord” My second son, Emery had found the woman he wanted to marry and spend the rest of his life with. Por supuesto, that I saw this coming so I resolved to be a good mother in law to this new up and coming Mrs. Greene. I remembered my suegra, and how she welcomed me into the family. 

And speaking about marriage, I prayed for my own marriage. I resolved again to be a better wife to my flaco, I prayed so much more and asked God for wisdom. Jesus heard my prayer, he knew I would need much patience as we swatted down the cobwebs of a 33 year union. Cobwebs that form when complacency and neglect are allowed to squat. Watching my son rejoice as he courted his girl, stirred my resolve.

March   

We watched the love story unfold while we toiled in our own lives. Birthdays came and we celebrated. Then I had my chance to coach and play some volleyball, what an invigorating time it was, with a vengeance I picked up the resolution to lose those pounds.  

April 

Filled to capacity with activities, events, celebrations and emotion. Our second son was 25 and ready to ask for Monique’s hand in marriage. It was a whirlwind of events. I did have lots of writing topics for my blog. My manuscript was almost covered up with “other” writings of importance. She said yes and we all scrambled to get into the wedding mode radar. 

May-July 

Groomzilla emerges! In the midst of wedding talk, wedding plans, wedding expenses and wedding stress, the other pages of living did go on, just in slower motion. Stress prevailed and the pounds were falling off, does that count as part of my “resolution” goal? 

Y pues, what do I tell you about my other resolutions? Writing goals and wife goals seemed to hang in the balances. The mother in law dance was happening already. 

August

Wedding time. A Pacific Coast trip. Although this would be a life changing trip, unfortunately it wasn’t going to be a leisurely trip. We  packed our highlander as tight as we could safely manage and made the 20 hour trip,in 18 hours. It was a terrific trip, ladened down with a lot of work and not just a little anxiety. It was a sweet and beautiful wedding, my favorite wedding party participant was the wedding boy, Jeremiah Joseph, mi nietecito, bien chulo! At 3 years old, this had not been his first wedding you know, just two weeks prior he had honored another tio with his graces and dubbed himself “Wedding Boy” 

About my resolutions, I had lost 20 lbs. I was too stressed to notice though. I had looked over my manuscript outline several times, but the writing for my book was getting dusty. Pero, I was still married 😁 and I was still praying for wisdom, does that count for a “good wife”?

September-November

My Benjamin and I entered into our 34th year of marriage and life and circumstance had stopped us on our tracks. We were looking at each other, making time to invest in each other. After raising four kids we were rediscovering each other, examining, uncovering  and finding peace. We had remembered the spouse of our youth, I cried in relief, my cold blooded Englishman doesn’t do those things. Tears of appreciation for God’s wonderful mercy and grace. I love my flaco and he loves me. I rest at the fact that God is with us and hears our prayer.

December:

A glorious time. Pero,  I forgot my main yearly resolutions. In the words of Chimoltrufia, Chavo del Ochos friend and my apas favorite. “Paque le digo que no, si si” (Why tell you, no, when the answer is yes) That’s right. Yes, I dropped a couple of resolutions again. I have some good excuses, I was a different kind of busy still and I wasn’t stressed anymore and some weight crept back on. Pero, my mother in law dance is flowing along,  y Dios is helping me with wisdom in my marriage. 

En conclusion:

As I have packed up last year, before I close up the box,  I count all the blessings and encourage myself in the resolution successes I experienced, even if they are a work in progress.

My resolutions are refastened. Pienso que, these lifelong resolutions, are just that, lifelong. I am so grateful that God, Emmanuel is with me always through these resolutions. It’s a new year, a clean slate, clearer vision, Amen! Y pues, like my apa always said  Rosalba, here the words: “Echale ganas!”