We came into the New Year, per usual, with high hopes and expectations. As the clocks hit midnight and we all celebrated in our own way, many of us created resolutions and goals for the New Year. We all want to be healthier, happier, better organized, try new hobbies, travel, etc. The list goes on and on. A new year promises new beginnings, a better year, a better future.

Well, here I am, a week into the New Year- sitting in bed, the same old me. But, for once, I am okay with that. I’ve realized that the person I am right now is okay- and while there are a million things I’d love to change about myself and my life, and there are a million things I want to do and try in the new year, I don’t want to lose myself and the good I do have.

So this year, instead of trying to change myself, I want to be more myself. There are things in my life that I absolutely love, such as my friends, family, and hobbies. I don’t and will not change them, but I do want to remember and cherish them. Looking back at a year of stress and trouble, the parts that stand out are laughing with my roommates, phone calls with my best friends from home, spending holidays with family, and pursuing the activities I am most passionate about. These are the good, the things in my life that I love. I have been fortunate enough to be able to understand that, and rather than trying to find happiness and fulfillment in something else, this year I am focusing more on the parts that have already bring that into my life.

Of course, this might not be the best way to approach the New Year. Maybe I would be a better person, or a happier if I took up some new habits/hobbies/resolutions and tried to change myself into a better me. Maybe I’ll have a mediocre year; maybe I won’t realize my full potential. But the reality is there is no perfect recipe to having a great year. What works and what is right for one person in one moment might not be the same for another. There are no guarantees that by going into the year with this outlook that I will actually be happy- but that goes the same for all other New Years philosophies. So we will just have to do what feels right in the moment and hope it works out.

Here’s to a New Year. Another year of late nights with the friends I love. Another year of eating family dinners and happy moments. Another year of running until my lungs ache, sketching until my hands hurt, and eating all the chocolate my stomach can take. We’ll see. Maybe this will be my year- the best one yet, the one that people make movies and write songs about. Or maybe it’ll suck. And if it does suck, there is always 2018…