Dumping Burdens

It took getting a good 24 hours into the new year to feel so good, but I do feel good. I made a promise to myself about my life in this year that I will turn 53:

If it's not fun, it should be satisfying.
If it's not satisfying, it should be rewarding.
If it's not rewarding, then to hell with it.

Simple, right? I think so. (FYI: I'm informally copyrighting that right here and right now.)

So, for anyone who may wonder about your status in my life - you're either now out of it or only in it because I want you to be or I can't get rid of you. For those that I can't get out of my life, I sure as hell can limit my exposure to you. If being around you doesn't do anything positive for me, I've got no reason to linger. You may not owe that to me, but I owe it to myself. It's a debt I can gladly pay.

If I don't feel better for being around you - you're out or limited.
If I don't feel respected when I'm around you - go away, or I will.
If your love is selfish or greedy - bye.
If you can't appreciate the sacrifices I make for you, I won't ask you to make anymore for me. And bye.

I have too much to battle out there in the world. I'm not going to let you poison the air my soul needs to breathe to survive that.

It feels so good to put that into words. It's going to be tough to put it into action, but I DID choose the word "strive" for my year. In that pursuit, I'm learning to be healthfully selfish.

Peace
--Free