REFLECTING ON 2021 & IT’S JUST BEGUN
Hi Y’all,
I’ve been doing a lot of reflecting this month. I think that’s how it goes at this time of year. I’m out here in Southern California and well it has been a year of pretty strict quarantining, days upon days of repeat. I will admit even this year got to me and I fell off my personal wagons. Exercise and I were no longer friends. My diet was out the window and I started eating things like sugar again. Even my daily meditation was gone. Yup, that was how I ended my 2020. I’m not going to say I’m proud of these accomplishments. I’m also not upset at myself for the things I can not change. What I am doing about it is getting back on track. Today marks day 12 of daily exercise. Exercise is the one thing I’m focusing on for now. You may recall, I’ve discussed focusing on one thing before. I have no end goal for how many days in a row I’m going to exercise, I just know for me to start any pattern in my life I have to do it on repeat. I’m also better when my life is focused on structure and planning.
So I’m running (quite literally) into 2021 with some newly found determination and hope. It’s just the beginning of 2021 and I know we are not out of the woods yet. The world is still in flux and will be for a little bit longer. I’m hopeful that with vaccines on the way, the world will begin to open up again. Travel is where I get to see some of my closest and dearest friends. I have friends scattered amongst the USA and a few cherished ones overseas. I was really looking forward to seeing these people face to face last year. That didn’t get to happen like I thought it would. Heck, we all know how 2020 was.
Most of these cherished friendships have come from my years of Naughty travels. It’s during these events like Naughty N’awlins, Temptation Cruise, and Naughty Beach that I get to have my chosen framily near. It’s better than any “real holiday” if you ask me. Yes, I have video chatted and picked up the phone for a call, it’s just not the same. There’s something about when the whole gang gets back together, there is a certain energy in it. Then you add in the spirit of 1,000 or more people like me and it’s epic. That’s what I miss most about events, the collaborative energetic feeling of it all. Also, meeting new people that I inevitably end up adding to my cherished friends’ list. There is nothing like the friendships you will make in this community. Speaking of, I still having a pending trip to Argentina to meet up with some new friends that I met at Temptation Resort in 2019. We still keep in touch to this day and I will be taking up their offer to have a semi-guided tour of a new country I’ve never explored. I know that day will come, it’s probably not going to be in the next few months but it will happen. So this where I’m bringing in hope to 2021.
I’m not going to let 2021 take the same road as 2020, there is too much change on the horizon. I personally feel it and I’m choosing to dream it. None of us know what the future holds or when things will get back to some new version of normal. We are all on the same ride in some way or another. I am getting prepared for a better time to come and bring a new 2021 attitude with it. One thing I know for sure the next time you see me, I’ll have that same fit body y’all remember. Along with that body comes a new happier attitude, it’s just plain science.
My goal in this article was to bring you some hope and get you dreaming of a brighter future. I also peppered with a dose of my own reality and letting y’all know 2020 wasn’t my best, so I’m bringing it back in 2021. Maybe, this gives you some encouragement too, if you found the end of 2020 veering off course. Since I’ve now announced it publicly, I guess I’m going to have to stay on track. We all hit some road bumps along, it’s all about dusting yourself off and forging forward.
I’m looking forward to seeing all of y’all sometime in the future, even if it’s 2022.
Much Love,
Minx🖤💋
Minx’s Monthly Mind Expansion:
January’s Recommend Reading:
Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll (Author), Sir John Tenniel (Illustrator)
This month I’m bringing you one of my all-time favorite books. One that I have read over and over again. Right now, I’m looking for a little whimsy in life an escape to someplace magical. For me, there is nothing like following a head strong young woman named, Alice, into a land of wonder. Y’all probably know of the first book of this series, Alice in Wonderland. The second book in the series, Through the Looking Glass, is where all the really crazy adventure is and more like the cinematic version you’ve seen. If you’ve never read this, I highly recommend it. If you have the time read them both, starting with Alice, of course.
Hard Cover: Through the Looking Glass (Royal Collector's Edition)
I know I just recommended a hardcover book and I’ll tell you why. This book has the original illustrations of Sir John Tenniel, for me, it’s all about the original line pencil drawings in the book, the colorized or childish version just won’t do. This was the only version of the book I could find with full illustrations.
Audio Book: Through the Looking-Glass (AmazonClassics Edition) by Lewis Carroll (Author), Michael Page (Narrator),
I’m recommending this particular version of the Audio Book because of the narrator, Michael Page. He gives the reading a slight English accent with just enough inflection on character voices to make them distinct but not over the top. I found most audio versions of this book are geared towards kids with full character acting.
Kindle Edition: Through the Looking-Glass (AmazonClassics Edition)
I found you guys the classic edition for the original illustrations.
In case you want to start at the beginning, I have the links for you, with all the original illustrations.
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland: Hardcover, Paperback & Kindle