No comparison

I have been accused, recently, of not acknowledging how amazing my own life is when comparing certain micro-aspects of it with others. As much as I hate to admit it, it was a fair and timely call. Fair, because I had started thinking about all of the things that I want to do that I am currently unable to do. Timely, because it stopped me from sliding down a slippery slope of discounting everything that is great right now by focusing on the things that I want Vs the things that I already have.

The thing is, the reason I can’t do all of the things I want to do, is because I am already doing so many of the things that I want to do; that’s a pretty awesome position to be in really. I’m not going to make it to Sydney to compete in Tough Mudder with my friends, I won’t be kicking up my heels and swinging the fooseballs out at Canberrang, and I shan’t be visiting Disney Land, New York, and Hawaii in eight weeks time with some of the best people I know. Why? Because by the time this year is over I will have:

• Flown to Hobart once, Melbourne twice, and Perth three times.
• Swung the fooseballs out in each of those three locations, as well as in my home town of Adelaide.
• Driven an Audi A5. With the top down. In winter.
• Run all the way around Uluru to raise money for a Vietnamese orphanage.
• Attended a beautiful friend’s wedding on a farm near the Margaret River.
• Perfected Michael Jackson’s Beat It dance.
• Seen Boy & Bear, The Rubens, Lana Del Rey, Kimbra, Mumford & Sons, The Tea Party, and Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros all perform live.
• Viewed performances of The Glass Menagerie, Educating Rita, Circa, Pinocchio, and close to thirty Fringe Festival acts.
• Danced in a music video for Monsieur Swing.
• Spent time with all of the people in this world who mean the most to me. Seriously. All of them. Which is no mean feat considering they are scattered all over Australia and the world.

So even though 2012 may not involve any hard-core obstacle courses or overseas travel, and even if I’m missing out on a few things here and there, it has been, and will continue to be, one of the most amazing years of my life; and I won’t forget that.