[2012 Suggestions, Not Resolutions.]

Keep up the reading. You’ve already read two books in 2012, so you’re off to a good start, but don’t pull a you and fall off the wagon. Force yourself to read fiction, because it’s the only way you actually get out of your own head, and you desperately need to do that right now. Force yourself to read non-fiction, because there’s a world out there beyond sparkly things and paintings and your heart that you need to understand. Keep your subscriptions to Vogue and Vanity Fair and Rolling Stone if you must, but you liked Business Week in high school and the WSJ in college, so maybe add one of those too.

Keep discovering new (or new to you) music. Over the last couple of years, you’d forgotten how alive it makes you feel. Remember when you used to go to shows a few times a month? Find a friend who loves seeing live music as much as you do, and start going again.

And how about running a little more? You always have grand ideas about starting up an exercise regime, but you really hate it so you always fail. But anything is better than nothing, which is why you ran one little mile last night and why you’ll run another this weekend and another next week. And it wouldn’t hurt to work on your abs a little too, ya know.

While we’re on the subject, Chubs, let’s lose a little weight. You've gained sooo much since you moved to DC, and it’s gross. Your recent the-boy-I-was-going-to-marry-broke-up-with-me-and-stopped-speaking-to-me-overnight-and-then-started-dating-Kristin-Krueger-right-in-front-of-me diet over the last two months has helped you drop 15 pounds like *that* (everyone should try it sometime!), but the whole too-sick-to-your-stomach-to-eat thing won’t last forever, so you’ll need to figure out another, more healthy approach soon.

Keep trying new things. They don’t always have to be big and they don’t always have to involve crooning in front of a crowd, but they should be things that are hard for you. You went to a stranger’s reception last week—your knee jerk reaction was to refuse, because you hate big groups and strangers, and weddings are particularly painful these days, and the combination of the three is your worst nightmare—but you went, got to play with sparklers for the first time, grew closer to an amazing person, and enjoyed yourself. And this week you posted a video of yourself playing piano to the world (or the three people who have watched it), which was terrifying, but you did it. Push yourself. It’s hard, but you’ll be better off.

And let’s think about bulking up your religious studies a bit. You’ve had the daily scripture reading thing down for years—it’s important to you and your life is like night and day without it, so you’re not going to stop. But there are other things you can be reading too, like General Conference talks and biographies of your religious leaders and even texts from other faiths, that will teach you and help you grow. Also, last semester, you committed to completing an Institute class from start to finish for the first time, and you did it! Now let’s do it again.

You’re so lucky to have the friends and family (and roomies!) you have, but you need to take care of them better, because that’s really why we’re all here. You’ve been wrapped up in your own little cocoon a lot recently, and it’s kind of understandable, but the time has come to check yoself—you and your little life are probably not the biggest deal in the world (what?!), but helping and loving others, even and especially beyond your circle of friends and family, is.

Finally, let’s think a little more positively, shall we? Because of just one person, you’ve been feeling pretty badly about yourself for the last little while, dwelling on all that is wrong and negative and crappy about you. And it’s been made clear to you that there’s plenty. But every now and then it wouldn’t hurt to try, even though it’s hard, to remember a good thing about yourself, okay? If nothing comes to mind, start with your teeth. You have good teeth. And, bizarrely, manicurists always compliment your nail beds. So...... you have that going for you.

You can do this. 2012, let's go.

(P.S. It also wouldn’t kill you to start brushing your hair every now and then or do laundry more than four times a year. Just sayin’.)