1825 Miles in 2023

Happy New Year! We welcomed 2023 with friends – clinking champagne flutes with New York, New York serenading the group as we wished each other a happy new year. Celebrating New Years Eve with military friends was a reminder of how much can change in a year. We have only known everyone standing in our family room that night since August and this summer we all will be scattering across the world to new assignments. I can’t help but look at the year in front of us as one filled with opportunity, transformation, and adventure.

We’re told that the road to hell is paved with good intentions (or unbought stuffed dogs if you’re Ernest Hemingway) so it’s not a surprise that this time of year we’re inundated with conflicting messages about resolutions. But I can’t help it – I love resolutions, intentions, and anything having to do with plans of action. This year, I hope to focus on both my mental and physical well-being more than I did in 2022, which is why my goal for 2023 is to walk/run/hike 1825 miles, which averages about 5 miles per day. These miles will be outside of the mileage my watch automatically calculates from my steps – each mile walked or ran will be done so with intention on top of my daily activity and strength workouts.

Why? I’m happiest outside and I love the way I feel after a long walk, a challenging hike, or a run. Not one to shy away from a challenge, tracking my mileage for the year will serve as a way for me to compete with myself and visually represent my progress.

Me thinks that the moment my legs begin to move, my thoughts begin to flow.

Henry David Thoreau

I feel like I’ve become a little too comfortable as of late. I’ve been talking myself out of too many things – some of my reluctance is centered in fear and some of it is rooted in laziness. This year, I’m not going to default to being reactionary – just waiting for something to happen. As the popular meme states, the diem isn’t going to carpe itself. Life is made up of choices. It is up to us to define a purpose, to set goals, to accomplish these goals, and to learn from the experience. And I look forward to what the 1825 miles will reveal to me over the next year.