Looking Ahead to 2024
December 30, 2023 – Returned from Puerto Vallarta
We just got back today from Mexico. We took a direct flight from Puerto Vallarta to Prince George via WestJet. It was a short trip with my daughter. We went to an all inclusive (adults only) hotel. It was a WestJet vacation. She paid for her share and I paid for mine (of course), but I also paid for any extras like an ocean side room, overnight stay at the Fairmont Hotel at the Vancouver Airport, and hotel transfers. The extras were my needs. The Fairmont was a beautiful hotel and we flew out of YVR early the next morning. We had a couple drinks in the lounge and Christmas dinner at my sister’s place. It was a great way to start our vacation. In Mexico, we had an oceanside room and the view was spectacular!! We started the vacation strong by going to Centro (or downtown Puerto Vallarta) via public transit. 10 pesos… that’s it!! My kid pushed me out of my comfort zone. We loved going to the Oyster Grill, visiting friends in Bucarias, and spending time at the resort. Going to Puerto Vallarta was the first trip that my daughter and I took together. It was a trip we both wanted to do.
Much like the Mexico trip, there were some amazing and wonderful moments in 2023 that I will definitely do again. There were also some things that I would do differently. Were there some down moments? Yes. For example, I totally wore the wrong shoes to Bucarias and for the remainder of the trip, I had huge blisters on my feet. They were super painful. I went to the Farmacia and bought many bandaids and spent time for the rest of the vacation maintaining these wounds. No more beaches for me. The sand gets everywhere. A poor decision on my part with natural consequences, but no regrets. I will do better next time. I’m still wearing the bandaids and my feet as I write this blog post. My blisters need time to heal. It feels better everyday and I could not let them hold me back from making the most of my vacation. I adapted. This is experiential learning. As my mom would say, I always like doing things the hard way. I don’t think that has changed. My twin brother researches and plans, and I depend on others and learn from experience. What I do know is, there is no perfect.
What’s important to me and why does it matter?
I’m back at this question which I believe 2024 will be the year. I’ve been pondering since the pandemic about what’s important to me and I’m brought to a memory I had when I was giving birth to my daughter 20-years ago. The nurse said, “you’re not pushing hard enough.” Oh… I was pissed, but she was not wrong. I needed someone like that to tell me the truth in a wholehearted way. I was even more annoyed when she said that the baby had to make it around the corner then reminded me that it was the third lesson in the prenatal series. I did not need that, but she made a point. I pushed. I pushed so hard that I blew a dozen blood vessels in my eyes, I had plenty of stitches, and I was unrecognizable to friends and family. Giving birth was the toughest thing I every had to do (and my dissertation is a close second). In essence, in 2024, I’ve just got to push harder, meaning, give it my all. I keep playing it safe, take partial risks, and shy away when the going gets tough. I have a goal and I need to get there.
In terms of short term goals, I need to redraft my dissertation to be an article. It was done once with my supervisor a few years ago. One rejection and I could not look back at that work. It reminds me of how fragile I was at that time and where I am today. I looked at that work before leaving for my trip to Mexico (which by the way, my friend would not let me bring this work on my trip) and realized that the feedback was fair and that much of my literature review was edited out in the 10000 word version. I thought it was me, when really, it was what we sent. There is a literature review, but now, my mindset has shifted as well as how I self-identity as a “math educator.” I need to revisit my work with new eyes and get this paper down to 5-6000 words. Maybe it’s two articles… who knows? What I am realizing is, my research program is PIVOTING towards identity and identity development. I see this now. And thinking about it makes me very excited. Hello 2024!! I am READY. Let’s do this!!