from bold to brave:)

Let's see. My only resolution for 2010 was to be bold. To step outside of myself and do things I wouldn't normally do, to make the uncomfortable, comfortable. Did I accomplish that goal this year?

At 12:01AM as the ball dropped in New York City, I stood amongst a swell of crazywired people who had stood for nine-twelve hours just as we did, and I kissed my best friend, whom I had liked for a measley seven years. Confetti fell on our heads, rested at our feet, people screamed, clinked shot glasses and cheered, and I began my new year off on a bold foot.

In February, I applied for a job at Cedar Point, in Sandusky, Ohio - a seven hour drive from my house in Central Pennsylvania. I got the job, and when school let out, without so much as going home to my family, I made the trip to my favorite theme park. I moved in with a perfect stranger, performed a job that I ended up despising, made some lasting connections, and quit within the first two months. That I quit, however, is not the point. The point is I made the first move - I went in the first place.

I got a tattoo.

In June, I attended a Writer's Conference in New York and shared my work with a group of people who were in the processes of becoming published. I received a critique from an established and esteemed author.

I celebrated my 21st birthday in Atlantic City, NJ with some family and friends. I gambled and drank and dipped my toes in the ocean and sunbathed on the beach. I gave up on Mr. New Years and moved on, finally.

I began to speak freely in class during the fall semester of my senior year. Sometimes, I still hold back, which, if you know anything about me, sharing my opinion in front of more than five people is difficult for me. Words come easier on paper.

I applied to grad schools that are 30-36 hour drives from my home in PA. I applied to places where I will know no one. I applied to schools in states in which I have never set foot.

I watched my roommate graduate with high honors and held back the tears. Brave face, I told myself, as if I were a six-year old getting a shot. There is not much that's bold about this situation, but I suppose it made an impact, regardless. Hello, 2011!

I invited Mr. New Years (of 2010) back to my house to celebrate the coming of 2011. Not because I'm looking for a repeat of events in NYC, but because he's my friend, and we're going to celebrate like it.


On another note, being bold is not a thing of last year, no I plan on carrying it into this year as well. But I need a new resolution, a trackable, doable one, like being bold.

In 2011, I'm going to be brave. Change is coming, and what could be more useful than a bit of bravery? What could take more courage than putting on that brave face and setting forth into new situations?