Let’s Go Back To The Future!

The other day, I came across an article – Today Is Not The Future. The article talks about the Back To The Future hoax that sweeps the web every few months. Basically, someone from your high school graduating class posts an incorrectly edited picture of the Delorean’s dashboard on Facebook and makes you think that Today Is The Day that Marty and Doc went back to the future. It gives you a sense of nostalgia and hope and reminds you of that time you had the flu and watched all of the Back To The Future trilogy while drinking your orange juice and Sprite cocktail. Yes, even the third one. (Which in my humble opinion is the best one. How can it not be when it’s set in the Wild West?)

But today is not the future. It’s not until October 21, 2015. And that’s the day that I will be happily married, with a job that I love, traveling the world with my Eddie Redmayne look-a-like husband, and maybe plans for a kid on the way. I will be filthy rich, skinnier than Anne Hathaway in Les Mis, write books on the side, and have a reality TV show. Also, I’ll have a dog! Probably a Labradoodle shaved like a miniature lion. 

Before we get into the details of my future- let’s time travel Back To The Past. Last year, I posted a blog “Who Do You Want To Be This Year,” and referenced a How I Met Your Mother episode. I think now it’s safe to say that during that time I discovered HIMYM on Netflix I didn’t leave my house much. Like, I didn’t see people for a couple of weeks. I was wrapped up in the perfection that is Ted Mosby and on  a personal note I was obsessed with weight loss.

I was like a monster. No drinking, chocolate chip cookies, or cheeseburgers. Working out every day. I dropped like 35 pounds and ran a half marathon, and discovered a healthy balance when it comes to working out and body image. No I don’t look like Jennifer Lawrence, but I’m not all the way there yet. In my post, I talked about becoming the person I wanted to be. And when it comes to living a healthy life, I need to eat more veggies and drink less coffee, I am drastically better at taking care of myself. So I step back and look at what happened today that wouldn’t have happened a year ago – I ran a cool 3 miles after work. I couldn’t even really run a full mile a year ago today. Timehop, tell ‘em. 

Okay cool. So I have a handle on that. But what about everything else in my life? My budget, my career goals, the intense desire to adopt a puppy, and the fact that I haven’t been on a decent date since October. Um, which one should I focus on? Half of them are completely out of my control and those seem to be the ones I want the most. Yeah, I can follow a strict budget, but that’s not nearly as fun as going out on sushi dates or dreaming about a new career. The puppy thing is probably last on my list, but it’s still up there.

A struggle that consumes me is the fight to be content. Content with the work I put into my life each day. Content in my singleness. Content in my opportunities and content in my options. When I go on my runs, that’s my time to become content and balanced and in nature, and it’s my time to become strong. It’s my time to put faith in the Universe and whatever happens, happens. It’s up to me, but it’s not.

And, TODAY IS NOT THE FUTURE! Today is all I have. Those 3 miles, writing this post, The Civil Wars, the Americano coffee sitting beside me. I have to have faith that everything will work out the way it’s supposed to. That I have to put every single ounce of me into this moment because it’s all I got.

In light of the Mayan calendar ending – welcome to the Beginning of the World. Your life is what you choose to do with it. One of my favorite parts of the year is this – full of chilly mornings and new beginnings. Hello, January. Sisters, I hope that your resolutions fill you up like a bag of triple pepperoni pizza rolls. Without the calories.

What are you all attempting to be content in? What does your future look like?

Mal xoxo
follow me on twitter, @malory