Day 12 NaBloPoMo at yeah write guest blogger: Gwen Straeffer

This Thursday is a very important day for me—I’m turning 21 and a half. That’s right, it’s almost time to celebrate the most underrated holiday of all time, the Half-Birthday! A day dedicated to the anxiety and depression that come from realizing I’m closer to my 22nd birthday than my 21st, followed by the consumption of half a cake and half a gallon of ice cream. That’s how this holiday works, right?

Okay, so I’ve never actually celebrated my half-birthday before. I don’t even usually remember it. It comes and goes like any other day; nothing special happens. Which makes sense because, well, it’s not really an important milestone. It’s just a day.

Last month, I celebrated one year of eating disorder recovery. Now that was a milestone. From the moment I opened my eyes that morning, I glowed with pride, amazed that I had somehow found the strength to keep fighting my illness for an entire year. My family and friends congratulated me with hugs and supportive words that inspired in me a grand resurgence of motivation. It was a wonderful day.

I’ve been thinking about that day a lot recently. For the past few weeks, I’ve had to juggle a lot more than I’m used to, which tends to push me a few steps backward. The stress, the lack of confidence, the constant nagging perfectionism – they bring me further and further away from those feelings of pride and determination. And I want to get in touch with positivity again, more than anything.

This afternoon, as I made the rounds to all my daily websites, I stopped to read NA‘s “Just for Today” meditation. That’s when the lightbulb went off. When I first sought treatment, so overwhelmed by the daunting task that was Recovery, I heard it all the time. “One day at a time. Don’t worry about tomorrow, just concentrate on today.” October 19, 2013, was my 365th day in recovery. Today is my 389th. What makes one so much more meaningful than the other? Why am I only allowing myself to be proud every one out of 365 days?

Success doesn’t have deadlines or timelines. There is no magical moment when you get to say, “Aha! That’s when I was successful!” It requires an unbelievable amount of hard work and dedication, along with scores of bad days, to make even the slightest progress. We don’t talk about the little things, the small victories that bring us closer to where we want to be. But we should.

Right now, it’s Day 12 of NaBloPoMo. Some of us have met our goal of posting every day so far. Others of us haven’t. When we get to Day 30, the same will still be true. Those who finish will have met with “success,” while those who missed a few days will probably feel discouraged. Maybe, though, we can turn that around. Maybe we can celebrate everyone who has participated today and forget about the massive project unfolding in front of us. We can celebrate Day 12 just like we’ll celebrate Day 30. And I can celebrate Day 389 just like I celebrated Day 365. The little victories of today that make us happy to be alive.

This Thursday, I’m going to celebrate my half-birthday. And tomorrow I’m going to celebrate my almost-half-birthday. Because every day deserves to be celebrated.

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Today is also challenge grid Tuesday here at yeah write! If you have a personal essay or traditional blog anecdote written this week (and, during NaBloPoMo, who doesn’t?) you are invited to join us for our weekly, friendly writing competition. Our Tuesday opening post explains most of how it works and, if you need some extra help, we’ve got a whole “how it works” section just for you. We welcome you as a writer, reader or voter.

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