I had plans for 2018. January 1, 2018 was going to be the start of my most productive year yet. I was going to write every day to get my manuscript done in record time and move on to editing so I could be that much closer to publication. I had a schedule laid out. I visualized each step in my mind. I was ready.
January 1, 2018 went exactly according to plan. January 2 that plan blew up in my face.
Someone was sick at work, could I cover? I’m not good at saying no, so I worked instead of wrote. Work ended up being crazy and I was too exhausted to do anything those first two weeks of January that required any sort of brain power. My manuscript took a backseat to life. Again. That was okay, the next week I would get back on track.
Nice try.
The next week I got sick.
Piercing headache, scratchy throat, dry cough, low fever, and no energy. I was in bed for three days before I had to go back to work – I do not have the luxury of paid sick days and rent does not pay itself – which meant what little energy I was able to muster was completely depleted by the time I got home. Writing did not happen.
That super productive January 2018 I envisioned? It went right out the window. Life did not give a fart about the plans that I made; it happened anyway. I was lying in bed, Ibuprofen in one hand, hot tea in the other ready to scream in frustration, but I found myself laughing instead. It was hilarious. The fact that I thought I could control life so surely. I was reminded how nothing will ever happen exactly according to plan, but that does not mean it will never happen. I did not get off to the start I envisioned for my new year. And that is okay. That is just life. Staying sane is more important than sticking to a schedule. Letting my body heal is more important than meeting my word count.
This week I am feeling much better and things at work have calmed down. I am taking full advantage of it, writing as much as I can without pushing myself too far. I am still following my plan, still envisioning a productive 2018, but I have a fresh reminder that my plan will probably get set back again. And when it does, I will laugh at life once more, thank it for keeping things interesting, and adapt. Most importantly, I will be sure to enjoy life as it happens, even if it is not what I planned, because life it happening one way or another. I do not want to miss it.
