Every year I set an intention, and every year I write about it here. Recent years were, in order, the year of the hike (‘20), the year of the book (‘21), and the year of the home (‘22). Well, 2022 turned out to be at least as much about the book (still to come), but the home has a new furnace and a/c (!), but still needs a lot of attention. Also, I hiked a bunch and became more regular in my yoga practice.
So, as I looked forward to the new year, I thought I just needed to do more of all those things. For the first time in years, no single area of focus compelled me.
But then I looked over my list of books I read this year, which I also post here annually (see below). Seeing a book I read by Jennifer Pharr Davis, Becoming Odyssa, reminded me of her book still on my “to read” list: The Pursuit of Endurance.
Endurance.
It’s a thing I have only come to prize in this stage in life. I’ve known for years I needed to stop expecting life to be free to struggle and heartache. I’ve wasted a lot of energy panicking over things I could have just set about managing.
So for 2023, I shall focus on endurance. Endurance for my book and other writing, my home, my hiking and yoga practice – endurance for my life itself. I don’t know exactly what it will look like, but it won’t be a marathon. Maybe I’ll be able to hang onto my sweaty foot long enough to stay in dancer pose for a literal hot minute. We shall see.
I wish all of you a Happy New Year and plenty of endurance throughout 2023.
Books I read in 2022:
These Precious Days, by Ann Patchett
The Only Woman in the Room, by Rita Lakin
The Good Girls Revolt, by Lynn Povich
James Baldwin, by David Leeming
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, by Rebecca Skloot
Corruptible, by Brian Klaas
Atlas of the Heart, by Brene Brown
The Burning, by Tim Madigan (a history of the Tulsa Race Massacre)
Brain Hacks, by Lara Honos-Webb PhD
Foreverland, by Heather Havrilesky
How To Stop Procrastinating, by Daniel Walter
Left on Tenth, by Delia Ephron
Strategize to Win, by Carla Harris
Premonition, by Michael Lewis
The Stoic Challenge, by William B. Irvine
Siracusa, by Delia Ephron
Stumbling on Happiness, by Daniel Gilbert
The Lion Is In, by Delia Ephron
Scrum, by Jeff and JJ Sutherland
Don’t Trust Your Gut, by Seth Stephens Davidowitz
The Upside of Stress, by Kelly McGonigal
Maybe You Should See Someone, by Lori Gottlieb
Essentialism, by Greg McKeown
Heartburn, by Nora Ephron
Delivered From Distraction, by Edward Ned Hallowell MD
The Man Who Broke Capitalism, by David Gelles
Guess What’s Different, by Susan Triemert
Liar’s Poker, by Michael Lewis
The Bonfire of the Vanities, by Tom Wolfe
The Nine, by Gwen Strauss
The Fire Next Time, by James Baldwin
Finding Me, by Viola Davis
Double Double, by Ken Grimes and Martha Grimes
The Cheffe, by Marie NDiaye
Detroit, An American Autopsy, by Charlie LeDuff
Platonic, by Marisa Franco
If, by Christopher Bently
Portrait of an Artist, a Biography of Georgia O’Keeffe, by Laurie Lisle
Susan, Linda, Nina & Cokie, by Lisa Napoli
Unfuck Yourself, by Gary John Bishop
Becoming Odyssa, by Jennifer Pharr Davis
Savor, by Lilian Chung and Thích Nhất Hạnh
True Love, by Thích Nhất Hạnh
The Wisdom of Insecurity, by Alan Watts
Choosing Courage, by Jim Detert
The Art of Loving, by Erich Fromm
Newsroom Confidential, by Margaret Sullivan
The Deepest South of All, by Richard Grant
24 Hours, by Greg Iles
The Untethered Soul, by Michael Singer
In Praise of Difficult Women, by Karen Karbo
Yoga Mind, by Suzan Colón
How to Stand Up to a Dictator, by Maria Ressa
Educated, by Tara Westover
Still Writing, by Dani Shapiro
The Things They Carried, by Tim O’Brien
Sally Vardaman 
Wow, with the number of books you read, you are and endurance reader. It reminded me of one of my all-time favorites, “Endurance: Shackelton’s Incredible Voyage” by Alfred Lansing. It taught me a lot about the human soul and led to my reading a long list of voyagers.
Adding that to my list! I find immersion in the stories of others the greatest antidote to getting stuck in my own narrative. :). Thanks for reading and commenting!