It is officially 2019. I unexpectedly decided just a few minutes after midnight on January 1st that I was going to be ditching social media in the new year. I deactivated Facebook and deleted my Instagram app. These are the only two social media outlets that I use regularly.
My cousins slept over for our annual NYE sleepover and we went to Shoney’s just as we have every year since I can remember. We had a really good day together. I made them homemade fajitas, which got an outstanding review. I went for a walk with one of them around the school next to my house. I finished off the day with a four-hour nap on the couch. It was a pretty great day. I’ve got to say, I do catch myself wondering what people are up to online, but I’m trying to train my brain not to care. My “why” for being off social media is multifaceted. This is the year I will become a wife. I don’t know exactly what type of wife I want to be, however, I do know I don’t want to spend my first year of (or few months of) marriage with my nose in my phone. Last week I spent an average of 7 hours a day on my cell phone. I will say, I do a lot of work from my phone. Still, that number is ridiculous. I also love to challenge myself. I don’t know if I will follow through this year, but it is my goal and I hope I find the willpower to sustain myself.
In the place of social media, I have begun documenting my life through an app I previously used called Day One. It’s got a pretty useful format and makes it easy to log my thoughts in words and pictures. It also automatically logs things like what I’m listening to and the weather. It’s like social media minus the opinions and approval.
I am in a pretty pleasant mood this year so far. I hope that this feeling lasts. I do seem to hit an after-Christmas-slump like many people do. The truth is that this is a very exciting year. My dad will retire from 33 years of service in the military. My parents will celebrate 30 years of marriage. I will get married to the love of my life. I will have been in full-time ministry for two years. I will celebrate three years of being vegetarian, and decide whether or not I will go forward with a fourth. I pray that this year I really see a difference in my levels of panic and anxiety. That is my number one prayer. I also plan to be more diligent in my prayer life. That definitely suffered last year and I don’t plan to let things get that bad again.
I also decided to buy a planner! It’s currently waiting on my doorstep at home and I cannot wait to write in it, so I created a spreadsheet with all the things I need to put in the planner when I get home. I love my Google calendar, but I’m very excited to write it all down.
As you can tell, things are off to a great start. I’m so glad 2018 is behind me.
SARAH HARPER 