Anna Koop

It might be a simpler shift than I thought. Rather than “Do the thing you love”, it’s “Do the thingS you love.” There. Done. Clearly not demanding you sacrifice all on the altar of following your dreams.

I’m working on believing that “because I want to” is fully adequate justification. It turns out that this is more conducive to being a kind and productive person than relying on “because I should.” Convenient, that.

If I (or those around me) ever think it’s getting out of hand, I’ll *then* work on reigning it in with some do-no-harm or Golden Rule modifier. But since part of what I want is to be light in dark places (besides being warm and fed and happy myself), it’s best left unmodified.

Is the life where winning the lottery, finding out I had a terminal illness, or being given the opportunity to do exactly what I wanted to for a week wouldn’t change my plans.

Luckily enough, I think such a life is possible. Eudaimonia, indeed.

The problem with being a night owl and starting work very late in the morning or early in the afternoon is that it’s late evening when it’s finally done. This is one of those irrefutable constants that still manages to surprise me, along with the saltiness of the ocean and how much faster it is to knit for babies than adults.

The only resolution I’m allowing myself this year is to be more mindful—live more in the moment and less in frantic plans for the future.

The edict “Begin as you mean to go on” has been dancing through my mind lately. Although it refers to the future moment, I think it helps to bring my focus to the now—every moment is a new beginning, and it’s in this present moment that I am showing how I mean to live, and what I mean for the future. My intentions are clearest in my present actions, not in schemes about what I should do or will do.

So. Here’s to a year of living in the now.

I’m wondering if it goes something like: You can’t deny insult, only the intent to insult. So whether or not a statement is racist depends on the hearer, not the speaker.

Intent matters, of course. But it’s only part of the equation.

If someone accuses you of acting Xist, and your reaction is “I can’t be Xist! Some of my best friends are X!” perhaps you should consider: “Someone found that Xist? Some of my best friends are X! Have I unintentionally hurt them?”

Just sayin’