2019 Goals

Here we are, again: mid-December, the time my gaze shifts to the new year ahead. This year, I've grouped my goals thematically rather than chronologically:

Spiritual
-Finish Reading the Bible Again for the First Time by Marcus Borg
-Read The Jewish Bible
-Strengthen daily meditation practice, especially Lectio Divina, utilizing The Jewish Bible, The Liturgists meditations, and others
-Go on 3-4 personal retreats, to the nearby Nahimana Forest and the not-so-close Mepkin Abbey in South Carolina and the Hermitage of the Holy Cross in West Virginia

Relational
-Continue to build daily closeness with Mindy
-Continue to build community with friends by hosting dinners and going out on co-dates with other couples
-? Church men's group
-Participate in college friend's book club every 2 months

Physical
-Participate in 3-4 triathlons this summer
-Kayak on the New River 6 times and another river at least once
-Teach myself the bongos, practice 3-4 times per week (most of my off-days)
-Vegetable garden again
-Smoke meat at least 3-4 times
-Forage for mushrooms at least once
-Grow mushrooms in a climate-controlled manner

Vocational
-Engage in leadership program project
-Go through a lot of case studies on my own
-? Pitch Grand Rounds project to hospital leadership in preparation for Family Medicine Residency (set to start in July 2020)
-Identify and start other Family Medicine Residency projects


The big-picture themes for my year are reapproaching the Bible in a new way and generosity of spirit. My goal is to be more empathetic, warm, and understanding by the end of next year than I am now. Though I'll still be reading books and book summaries and posting my reflections, I'll be more focused on the emotional and relational side of life, which is where I stand to grow the most right now. And I hope that, as a result, joy and humor will flow like never before!