I’ve never been one for making resolutions (that’s what they all say), which is strange because I tend to be a very goal-oriented person.  Since I have some very specific goals in mind for the upcoming year, I’m making an exception.  In the style of Aleya from Rock and Sky, I want to take a moment to reflect on 2010 and look forward to what’s coming up in 2011.

So first, 2010.

2010 was an amazing year.  I began the year recovering from hip surgery and was cautiously allowed back on the climbing wall in February.  By the summer I was back at it and climbed my first multi-pitch climb in the Black Hills.  It was an amazing experience and I’ve been able to pull a lot of strength from it.  I took a trip out west through Wyoming and Montana with my fiance, did some hiking in the mountains for the first time and saw some really beautiful country.  I also climbed in my first competition, which I found to be a great motivator for training.

I grew quite a bit as a person this year as well.  It was a year of clarification for me.  There were lessons in acceptance that my goals and passions morph and change as I go through life.  Accepting those changes meant saying goodbye to things that were once a really big part of my life.  Naturally, there was a sadness that went along with that, but also quite a bit of excitement looking forward.

A lovely end to the year was the Chicks Climbing Girly Guns photo contest.  Seth took a great photo of me during the climbing competition in December, we entered it in the contest, and we won!  Some great new gear from Marmot is heading our way to carry into next year’s adventures.  Thanks to everyone who voted!

It was a year full of budding friendships and waning of others, full of love and giddiness, full of excitement and new things, and a year of self-reflection.  Where am I?  What’s really important to me, and how do I prioritize my time to reflect that?

That last sentence is one of the big things that I’ll be carrying over to 2011.  So, here is my list for 2011.

• Prioritize my time.  Work on saying ‘no’ in order to create the room for these priorities.
• People, climbing, work, downtime/recovery time built into the schedule
• Keep myself mentally healthy so that I can be fully present for others.
• Get married to a wonderful, inspiring, and amazing man.
• Ice climbing
• Take intro course in the next few weeks
• Get our ice-climbing tree up and running!  Should be cold enough to climb through the first part of April…
• Rock climbing
• Learn and drill the basics of anchors/knots/ropes/gear, etc.  Apply outdoors with the supervision of an experienced climber.
• Lots more climbing locally at Taylor’s Falls and Red Wing this year.
• Climb Devil’s Tower (first time)
• Climb in the Black Hills (second time)
• Climb in Yosemite (first time)
• Get up to the North Shore at least once (first time)
• Participate in local competitions
• Training
• Complete my first unassisted pull-up (and hopefully many more after that)!
• Install fingerboard in the house for hanging and pull-ups.
• Register for a Summit for Someone climb for 2012.
• Increase my bike commuting over last year.
• Nourish and strengthen personal relationships.
• Reduce personal debt.

This seems like a lot when I write it all out, but I think it’s manageable when spread out over the year.  The most important thing that I need to keep thinking about is to be honest about my time and what I can handle in order to make room for accomplishing these goals.  My work schedule is going to change in June in a way that will make things more difficult, so knowing my limitations will become even more important than it already is.

So there you have it.  The most exciting list I may have ever written.

What’s on your list?

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