When I was in elementary school, my teachers made the students write the heading on the top left corner of our papers, consisting of name, subject and the date, which had to be spelled out completely. I always hated it when months changed, because it took me about three days to get used to writing out the new month instead of the prior month.
As I got older, remembering the change of months was no longer an issue. Probably because writing headers was no longer a prerequisite outside of elementary school or because I was viewing time in terms of big deadlines that my mental calendar became one long page of 365 consecutive blocks rather than a 12-page monthly calendar.
But I loved it when the year changed, even if it took my child self a couple days to get used to writing the new year in my heading on class papers. I think a big part of it was the big holiday spirit and how the human psyche naturally seems to appreciate the feeling of a fresh, new start. Even my new years posts on my very own blog over the past couple years is evidence of this.
This holiday season was different. No holiday cheer. No butterflies in my stomach thinking of new resolutions. Of course, energy for a fresh start and a new year is nice, but I found the reality of near-term responsibilities overpowering. I called my mom the other day and told her about this, to which she replied, “You’re getting older.”
