Although we are already a couple of weeks into January of the year 2024, I would still like to offer my annual review of the year 2023. However, rather than fill this column with words or phrases that capture the year for all, I am providing three primary categories that can best describe what 2023 meant… to me.
ACHIEVEMENT: As most of you know, I completed my academic pursuits in 2023 by obtaining my doctorate in developmental psychology. In addition, I published my first two books and started a company. These achievements are significant to me because I worked (for many years) toward them. But as much as these achievements are marked by pieces of paper, I am prouder of the emotional successes I maintained behind them. I may have achieved an academic degree, but I did so with my personal friendships intact. And rather than seeking a job for another upon graduation, I have been given the creative freedom and support from my family to pursue my dream of forging my own career.
ABUNDANCE: Perhaps a bit unexpectedly, I am categorizing 2023 as abundant because I realized, when I resettled early last year in Germany, that I/we had accumulated lots of stuff! And then, as my dissertation moved into the defense stage and I began to clean up my office, I realized, again, that I had also accumulated lots of paper! I filled an entire large garbage bin with all of the paper I could finally free myself from. After tossing most of my office, I considered getting rid of more of my clothes in my already filled-to-the-brim closet. I can report, unfortunately, that I am still working on this…  Likewise, the feeling of having way too much stuff also transferred to my social commitments in that I felt like I had too many things to do and too many places to go. My social quantity increased but it also felt like the quality of my social experiences may have suffered a bit.
ASPIRATION: Finally, 2023 showed me that no matter what goals or age I reach, I continue to aspire to more. Not more in the sense of adding to my stuff or bank account, but rather more in that I seem to perpetually establish new goals for myself. For example, I am currently working on two books and have an additional two more planned. I aspire to grow my company by hiring an employee (or two) and finding an office/retail space so that I can offer a bookstore experience for all the writers and readers in the world. And now that my schooling is complete, I am reinvigorating my German language learning so that I can improve my communication skills. And finally, and perhaps most importantly, I aspire to continue to improve my ability to be present for every experience, both the good ones and the challenging ones, I am lucky enough to have in 2024.
Kathy Naumann, possessor of NATURALLY curly hair and the understanding that you can’t control everything!

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