by Hope
How will you finish out the year? Will you spend it celebrating all the wins of the year? Wallowing in the loss? Or are you already forward facing? Ready to leave 2024 in the past and step into what is to come?
For me, I am slowing down this year. Being very intentional about where I allow my mind to linger.
While I may never be able to stop my mind from racing, from making lists, from looking far into the future and attempting to make plans. I can choose different. And this year, I am choosing to slow down this month.
Christmas is different this year. I’ve made no plans, set no expectations, and plan to take the day as it comes.
Since I’ve returned from Texas, I am taking each day as it comes. Trying to sit on decisions and evaluating all options. Not rushing or being ruled by emotions. Nor fear.
The Last Few Years were…
2023 was spent wading through grief and loss. It felt like I was tossed from crisis to loss and then back again, over and over again.
2024 has been spent making strides to regain my equilibrium and rolling around ideas for my future. And the transition to empty nester was complete.
2025 is going to be the year that I make decisions about what this next phase of life will be. I must be wise. And I must not rush.
And that is my focus for this last month of the year. I am going to be still. Be quiet. Be alone. And spend time seeking God’s will, determining what is best and healthiest for me, and perhaps, finding a purpose that I can turn my eye too. I truly do need something outside of my own head to focus on. But I have absolutely no idea what that is to be.
My wish for you these last two weeks – peace, joy, and a gentle ending to the year.
Hope is a resourceful and solutions-driven business manager who has spent nearly two decades helping clients streamline their operations and grow their businesses through project management, digital marketing, and tech expertise. Recently transitioning from her role as a single mom of five foster/adoptive children to an empty nester, Hope is navigating the emotional and practical challenges of redefining her life while maintaining her determination to regain financial control and eliminate debt.
Living in a cozy small town in northeast Georgia with her three dogs, Hope cherishes the serenity of the mountains over the bustle of the beach. Though her kids are now finding their footing in the world—pursuing education, careers, and independence—she remains deeply committed to supporting them in this next chapter, even as she faces the bittersweet tug of letting go.
Since joining the Blogging Away Debt community in 2015, Hope has candidly shared her journey of financial ups and downs. Now, with a renewed focus and a clear path ahead, she’s ready to tackle her finances with the same passion and perseverance that she’s brought to her life and career. Through her writing, she continues to inspire others to confront their own financial challenges and strive for a brighter future.
