fredizzle: The First Hour of 2007

I'm writing this post in the first hour of 2007. I've decided not to make any new year resolutions. Enough with the resolutions. I believe that not making resolutions does not make me a pessimistic, visionless man. I've decided to live in the present - in the here and now.
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I do, however, wish to start this new year by making a short list of what I'm grateful for in the year 2006. This will give me a little perspective, if and when I do read this post a year from now.

I'm grateful....

To have finally completed my degree after 4 long years. Looking back, I find that I struggled so much just to obtain this piece of certification. I was so fearful of not being able to graduate, I even had nightmares about it 2 months after my graduation ceremony. I'm just glad it is over.
To my parents, for their unflinching support throughout those 4 years. They gave me the opportunity of a lifetime to study overseas, to experience another country and culture, to be independant, to have space to find myself. Without their sacrifices to fund this dream, without their continual support to let me forge my own path, my life would have been so different.
To be placed in my current position as a voice of reason within my family. With everyone so headstrong, I guess I'm the cushion this family needs to ease the friction. I guess there is a reason why the definition of my name is "the peacekeeper."
To have found bambi and yaliooh. I'm not a very social person, so finding 2 individuals that suit my lifestyle and personality is really a godsend. They just let me be me, and that, to me, is a much treasured quality.
To have a good solid rest. I look forward to enter a new chapter in my life. A transistion from a struggling student to a working adult. It is time to move on.
To be able to see some friends through very difficult times. I'm glad God gave me enough wisdom to shut up and listen. Judge not. Fear not. Hate not.
To be level-headed when it comes to matters of the heart. I must admit. I would like to have a taste of what being in love is all about. However, there are tasks at hand that I have to conquer first. I have to find myself and my sense of self-worth before I start any romantic alliance. I need to be fair to me and more so to her.
To have developed the resolve to lose weight. I thank God that it has finally sunk in - the seriousness of my weight issue. I'm not getting any younger. I cannot have blatant disregard for my health anymore. If I want my quality of life to be good, then my health must be of paramount importance.
To God. He has helped me realize that I cannot always change the situation presented before me. I can, however, change the way I see it. He helped me understand that it is alright to scream, to be frustrated, to despair, to be angry, to lament, to complain, to ask "why why why" because this is the way we humans are, but after exhausting all those emotions, to come back to Him, be still and know that He is God. He is still in control.
That I can live past my 27th birthday (2006) when - in my personal experience - some cannot say the same. I want to take each day as it comes. Life is like that I guess, control it too much and you might just miss the point of it all, let go too much and you just might lose it all. Finding balance? Easier said than done, but it is a lofty goal, it is a worthy goal.