A New Alliance With An Old Nemesis

I've been doing some thinking about January. For the past couple of years, I've dreaded its arrival and the uncertainty that it always brings. Every unfortunate thing that has ever happened to me in January, I've blamed simply on the month in which it occured. But today, on the first day of 2007, I believe that a change in my attitude is in order.
For one thing, I'm finding it harder and harder to believe that any month could purposely be as cruel as I believed January to be. In fact, by all accounts, January should be the friendliest of all the twelve months--after all, you don't see people worldwide throwing massive parties and staying awake in eager anticipation of the coming of, say, September. We give January such a warm welcome that the least it can do is be decent to us; it couldn't possibly inflict misery and suffering of its own accord.
In addition, I'm one day into January 2007, and I'm already off to a much better start than I was last year and the year before. Last night, New Year's Eve, was delightful compared to those in years past. Although I was at home with my parents, I was there by choice. I wasn't feeling left out and abandoned by friends, and neither was I involved in any gunpowder-related accidents (I'm actually quite proud of that story now, so if you haven't read it, please humor me and click here). Instead, I sat quite contentedly in an armchair in the living room, watching movies and reading an excellent book until midnight, at which time I rang in the new year, had a wonderful (but sleepy) phone conversation with my favorite Huntingdonian, and then slept soundly until I felt like waking up. There's something to be said for a low-key celebration (especially when you're the only one who tones it down: this morning, when Mom and I decided to go on our fifteen-hundredth shopping trip of my vacation, we had the roads and the malls practically to ourselves, due to the fact that the majority of the townsfolk were at home nursing hangovers).
But best of all, I'm beginning the new year with a much more positive outlook than usual. I'm not dealing with any crumbling relationships, I'm working in a job that I actually enjoy (only for a few more days, but still), I'm rested and relaxed after a long break at home, and I'm looking forward to another wonderful semester at Huntingdon. And Seasonal Affective Disorder? No thank you. Even if the weather does decide to get cold again, I'm armed and ready with new scarves, warm socks, and a wool peacoat--gimme all you got. Life is what you make it, and I feel like making it great, even in January. Happy New Year!!