You know when people ask you where you see yourself at certain ages? Especially when you're in high school? There were people who knew or had goals. I had nothing. My future vision was completely blank. I thought I had no direction and was genuinely worried. In hindsight, it has been quite a ride. I could equate it to being an author. A blank sheet of paper, so to speak. Instead of the words already written down for me, I wrote them myself. I chose what my story would look like and I'm still writing, filling those pages with adventures.
I've started my community leadership class and even though we've only had two class sessions, I am hooked! I come home excited and I have a hard time falling asleep because I'm thinking of what we talked about, the projects we've discussed, and everything in between. We have a dynamic group of people, an large age span that works well together, and so many amazing ideas. And all focused on our Pasifika community here in Utah.
My goal of eating healthier is going well. I have to eat a fresh serving of veggies (on rare occasions fruits) for lunch and dinner every day. So far so good. My exercise regiment is consistent, even when my back went out on me this week. And I've cut down on social media. Not bad. A great start to the great year of 50!
What about my stories? The one goal I'm struggling with in week three of January. When I sit down to write, I draw a blank. I have a few stories I've started but no motivation to move forward with them, even though deep down inside I really want to get writing again. Not sure where the blockage is coming from. I've been reading a lot more lately, hoping it will help and maybe inspire me. Or at least it's been a great distraction from the frustration of not writing.
I've been doing some genealogy work, looking back on some things my mom researched, reading through the fa'alupega of Samoa written by Kramer, and discovering interesting facts about my family. This is all leading up to something wonderful that I can't wait to share with you in March/April.
Speaking of genealogy, when I was pregnant with my youngest daughter, the ultrasound showed a sack of fluids on the back of her neck. The diagnosis was scary. She could come out and possibly be down syndrome, have growth issues and have to take hormone medication for the rest of her life, or come out normal. When meeting with a specialist, one of the questions she asked was whether my husband and I were related. Ew. No, I answered emphatically. Then I backed up and said, "Well, not that we know of." Good news, my daughter came out just fine. She's a diva but I don't think that's from the diagnosis, just her namesake. The genealogy, on the other hand, could have found the connection. It's from a very long time ago but there is a possibility my husband and I are related. It comes from the Tu'itonga line before Queen Salamasina. My husband thinks it's hilarious. Cue my huge eye roll. My comeback is that I outrank him and that's more important on the Tongan side. Boo ya! It's amazing the stories you can find when digging a little deeper into the past. I was hoping to find something to help me write some stories but instead, I found an understanding and love of familial lines.
Wish me luck with my investigating! I should have been a lawyer...
