You began the new year with a list or maybe an idea of a list of plans you want to accomplish. You eagerly prepared and gathered together the supplies necessary to start your project. Where are you now?
But mouse friend, you are not alone
in proving foresight may be vain:
the best laid schemes of Mice and Men
go oft awry
and leave us only grief and pain
for promised joy!
(Robert Burns, To A Mouse, stanza 7, A Modern Translation by Michael R. Burch)
https://www.rcsdk12.org/cms/lib/NY01001156/Centricity/Domain/3732/to-a-mouse-translation.pdf
The Scottish poet Robert Burns wrote the poem To a Mouse in 1785. The third line, stanza 7 of the poem about plans going awry, is still being quoted 240 years later.
See, you’re no different than someone who lived over two centuries ago. People make plans, and their plans are forgotten, tossed to the side as unimportant or maybe overwhelming. Was that goal, that dream that you created and designed overwhelming? Was the strategy flawed and need to be reworked? Your dream, your plans, are valuable. If you imagined to accomplish or aspired to do something, DON’T GIVE UP. You don’t have to begin a project, a goal, a dream on the first day of a new year. If you did and you lost your way, pick up where you left off. The goal you set was your goal. The plan or dream is yours. You are in control.
As I think about my projects for the new year, I’m not where I want to be, but I’m holding my own. I’m reaching out to you every day—that was my most important goal. I created a Facebook page for these daily writings and am working on a website. I still have much to do before I reach the other goals I’ve set for myself, but I knew I would not accomplish everything or do everything on my list immediately. I’ve learned that life is a marathon and not a sprint. I can enjoy so much more when I take time to appreciate the journey and what I accomplish and not worry about checking boxes. If I have overcommitted myself this year, I can save some for next year. I am prioritizing what is important: this project, my health, and time with family and friends. Everything else is a windfall. (Ecclesiastes 9:11)
Think about plans and goals that benefit you. Focus on those, don’t worry about dates. I have a goal that I started on January 1 that I track through an app and I’m a week behind. I’m going to start today to catch up. It’s not too late to implement your plan to realize your goals and dreams.
April 4, 2025
