So much for “dreaming big.”

2012 came and went in a blur with nary a post since March. In that time we’ve seen triumph and tragedy, old things become new again, a contentious and costly election and definitive proof that the Mayans weren’t such great prognosticators after all. And through it all I didn’t stop once to stare out the window and reflect on what to say here (or anywhere else, for that matter). But hopefully that’s about to change.

With the “chance” the Mayans could be right and our time on this earth was even more finite than we’d ever dreamed, it was the perfect time to take stock of our lives and appreciate what a gift this world is – especially in light of the horror and sorrow we watched play out in places like Aurora and Sandy Hook and the waterlogged eastern seaboard. But did we? I didn’t, but I realize I should have, and I plan to on a regular basis from now on. And I hope you do too.

It may sound simplistic, but I’d just rather force myself to stop and smell the roses once in a while than spend my days worrying about when I’ll be pushing up daises.