Happy September. Happy...New Year?

September always feels like the promising start of something brand new.

For your listening pleasure. Always one of my favorites.

Although it’s been quite a few years eons since my kids - or I - were in school, September always fills me with a combination of nervous energy and excitement, balanced with dread and sadness.

Something about the air in late August feels… different. It even smells different. Is that, I wonder, my memories playing tricks on me, taking me back to the days when late August signified an about-face from the carefree summer months and a being thrust into the unknown? I so clearly remember those mixed emotions. Shopping for new school supplies…new clothing…new shoes. All so evocative. A promise of a blank slate ahead, with discoveries to be made. But also, as a shy, reticent kid, that slate never failed to fill itself in with a bit of dread and a shitload of “what-ifs” (What if I don’t make friends? What if I get lost? What if I don’t like my teacher? What if I forget to bring my lunch?)

I suppose the good thing about being our age is that we can now board that bus and actually be the one to steer it - and even shift gears. (Although I must admit to still feeling jitters when I have to shift gears from summer to fall and beyond. Do we not ever get away from being that nervous kid???)

With September feeling like the start of a new year, we all have an opportunity to rethink, recharge, and reconnect.

It’s strange. I’m a person who never likes to make New Year’s resolutions, yet I find myself always making September resolutions. Go figure.

Here’s what I’m planning to do:

1. Put more time into my freelance writing. It’s taken sort of a back seat because, well, I love summer and find it hard(er) to be prolific. But I know that once the cold weather gets here and I’m forced to hole up indoors, I’ll be antsy to get back to work mode and will (hopefully) rediscover my creative juices.

2. Tossing my old makeup and sunscreen. Neither lasts forever, says the American Academy of Dermatology Association. There are many good reasons for a good clean-out.

3. Committing myself to an actual schedule. I get stuff done, and always meet my deadlines. But I am more of the loosey-goosey type and tend to rebel against a set “schedule.” And yet, the older I get, the more I realize it’s not such a bad thing (in small doses, of course). For instance, ever since the start of the pandemic, I’ve worked out at home. But now, I plan on attending some in-person exercise classes like pilates and rowing, which I sorely miss. (An added plus? My insurance company grants me several freebies every month.) And that requires scheduling myself. For that kind of schedule, I’m in!

4. Purge. My closet is holding onto a lot of clothing that I haven’t worn in years, and by all estimations, probably won’t ever wear again. Part of the problem is that I love fashion, and have a hard time letting go. It’s not that the clothing no longer fits, but rather that I have my select favorites, and those are the pieces I go back to time and time again. (Like food. I eat the same breakfast every. damn. day.) I’m growing tired of holding onto things that no longer serve my purpose (or bring me joy, as a nod to Marie Kondo. (Now, I just need to find time in my schedule to take on this task, haha.)

5. And here I’m stuck. Why do I feel the need to do five things, when I can do four (or three, or two or just one? (Perhaps that exact connmdrum should be #5…

5 . (On repeat). Realize that just making ONE CHANGE can have a huge impact on your life.

Does September make you want to make changes, too? Feel free to share them with us!