That's it for 2022. Made it through another year of monthly challenges and resolutions. Some wins, some losses, and some ideas of what comes next.
I wanted to have a website and announcement trailer finished for my game project, but that was a swing and a miss. It's in progress, and could just call it done, but it's close to being something I'm proud of, so I'm going to see it through right. Even though I don't have it done, it was a good goal to have throughout the year. Kept the ball rolling.
I also meant to start networking with the indie game dev community. Sharing encouragement and constructive criticism for other devs and their projects, as well as putting myself out there and sharing my work with the community. This is something I wanted to do the least, and it showed. I did answer some questions here and there on forums for other devs, but as a whole, can't say I put much effort towards this one. Being social on social media has just never come naturally to me. Wish I could chalk it up solely to a fear of rejection, since that can be overcome, but I think more than anything it's a general disinterest in it all. I dont know how you overcome that. What I do know is at some point, I'm gonna need to lean into it, especially if I ever expect my projects to reach an audience. This just wasn't my year for it.
My last overarching goal for the year was to try and eat vegetarian at least 3 days a week, building on the momentum of the past few years. Some weeks I went over 3 days, some weeks under. I didn't strictly track this one, so I might be a little over, or I might be a little under for the year, but whatever the case I'm fine with that. What's important to me was having a lasting mindset throughout the year to try to eat less meat, and I did just that, even if it wasn't always perfect.
As for my monthly challenges, this marked my third year of exploring them. I started them because I was feeling stagnant. They were meant to spark some change and ideally growth. I've certainly learned a lot, from some more than others, and have no regrets about it, but over time I've started to question my motivations in continuing them. Some challenges haven't required much of me, while others were unreasonably demanding. But even the smallest challenges I've come up with, still occupy space in my mind and demand my attention. None of which is helping put out the flames of a wildfire that's been burning through my life for years now.
My marriage has been easy in so many ways, and it's been hard in others. I'm sure that's true and natural for just about any marriage, and to expect anything more might just be fantasy. But for us, the hard parts seem to be much harder than they ever should be for anyone. While it's no one's fault, it's been true for a long while now, and it's been difficult to say the least. Even more challenging is I don't see any path forward that doesn't hold even harder times and heavier thoughts on the immediate horizon. Knowing this, I don't think coming up with a list of monthly challenges is going to help me be fully present for the work ahead. It would do the complete opposite. It would help me ignore and continue to tolerate the challenges of our marriage instead of addressing them. That's what led me to incorporate these challenges into my life to begin with I think. To stave off that terrible feeling of being lost. I believe a clear heart and mind will yield you direction, like a compass would, but this compass needle is easily disturbed by the noise of distractions.
I'm not setting any resolutions or monthly challenges this year. Instead, I'm going to do my best to be present in my life, to feel it all, to listen to those feelings, and to try and get myself and my wife pointed in the direction, or directions, we need to go. All this said, I'm entering 2023 knowing that this year will probably be the hardest of my life yet. Although in this moment it doesn't feel all that happy, I'll say it anyway. Happy New Year.
Discover more from over the years: