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#Cultivate2012 Map

Map: Imagine a map existed, guiding you towards your dreams. Try to envision the route. How are you going to map out your dreams for 2013?

The current path has me following a map that leads a circle. I’m lost in the woods. I’m passing the same landmarks over and over again. The weather and time may change these same old landmarks, but they mock me just the same. I need to find my way out of the woods. I need to stop returning to the worn, circular path that traps me in anxiety and frustration. I feel so hopelessly lost, and I can’t live this way anymore. It’s time to veer off this hellish path. It’s time for a compass and a plan.

The dark road ahead won’t give me any clues as to what lies in wait. I simply know where I’d like to arrive. I’d like to find the clearing by December 2013. I’d like to find my way out of the poverty trap by then. My means to this end may not be a known yet, but I’m tired of living this life of debt and poverty. I’m envisioning a higher income and benefits by the end of 2013. I’m envisioning a background that paves the way to home-ownership. I’m dreaming of a map that gives me directions to my desires. I’m dreaming of finding a better way to live. I’m dreaming of entering my 30s as a more capable adult who doesn’t even need to rely on programs that could cease to exist at any point.

So I’m drawing a map. I’m trying to think rationally about following the course. I’m packing my resources and provisions for the treacherous journey that could await me. I’m rounding up a group of companions to help me fight my way through the dark forest of uncertainty. I plan to find my way out triumphantly. Failure is no longer an option. Finding happiness is a circle is no longer an option. There is no happiness in a rut. I must find my way — I must strive to fight my way to victory.

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#Cultivate2012 Follow Your Heart

Follow Your Heart: Did you follow your heart this year? Where will you follow your heart to in 2013?

I tried my very best to follow my heart this year. I may not have always listened to it, but as the year draws to a close I feel that I’m living with intention and following my heart’s yearnings to live on purpose — to live a life worth loving, a life in which I’m thriving.

With 2013 approaching quickly, I’m planning to “listen to the whispers of [my] heart” more often. I temper it with my mind’s rationale, but I know that my heart’s desires are pure and logical. It’s alright to want a thriving life, and it’s alright to want to follow a path less trodden. I’m going to continue following my heart and living with intention.

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#Cultivate2012 Gift

Gift: We cannot deny that December seems to hold a great many gift-giving holidays. What’s the best gift you gave to someone else this year?

The best gift I gave was a small, motorized car for my youngest son. He showed an interest in our neighbor’s daughter’s car, and he’s been so happy to go outside. and “drive” along the road. He sits in it with such a content smile.

The best gift I received was the money to pay off one of my smaller student loans and fix our van. My grandmother really saved the day for us by doing so, and it’s freed up funding to pay down other debts. I can’t express enough how happy I am to have two important things handled. We only have our van, and it means the difference between managing our lives and being stranded in a rural community.

The best gift I gave myself was this Cultivate project. I’ve explored so much within my psyche, and I’ve opened lots of doorways for myself to heal my wounds. I wouldn’t have achieved this state of peace if I hadn’t taken the initiative to change my life.

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#Cultivate2012 Service

Service: Community service sounds terrifying to some people, but it’s necessary for a prosperous community. Was there something you contributed to your community this year? What can you do to help your community in 2013?

I didn’t do any service to my community, but at the time I was too busy cleaning up that which matters most. Now that I’ve gotten life in a stabilized state, I feel that I need to contribute something more to my community. I see so many projects that need at least one person to care enough to start.

I’d like to start an initiative to revive businesses at a few major intersections near my home. I also want to see businesses along a main route to Chattanooga revived and reopened. Our county needs more local jobs to support our local economy. We need  more than big box chains in a centralized section of a single town. Our county needs at least a little growth and change to boost our economy. I see too many dilapidated homes, too. Our residents deserve so much more than closed down businesses and run down homes. We deserve a beautiful community full of thriving families and businesses. Our children deserve better than this, too.

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#Cultivate2012 Support and Connect

Support and Connect: We need to connect with a support group in our community in case one of us falls on hard times. How strongly connected are you and your support group? How can you cultivate support and connections next year?

I’ve got a loose connection to my support network. It feels mostly tethered by the bonds of Facebook, but I feel the connections strengthen as time passes. Next year I need to identify ways to cultivate these connections more — to offer more support to those who have supported me. I’d like to actually interact more often with my support network — outside of the workplace, as is the case for most of my friends in my support network. I’d like to share more. I’d like to give more. I’d like to do more. Perhaps as life continues to stabilize, I’ll have the ability to do so. Until then, I’m going to keep dreaming up ways to be a supportive connection for those I care about.

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#Cultivate2012 Pay It Forward

Pay It Forward: Some days someone comes along to help us during a time of need. Some times we get the honor of bestowing that gift to someone else. Who paid it forward for you? Who did you pay it forward for? How can you pay in forward in 2013?

A good family friend really paid it forward for us this August. She gave me several rides to and from work when our van was in the shop. Those rides meant the difference between our financial life or death — I don’t know that I could have maintained employment if she hadn’t been one of the biggest helpers. She really paid it forward, and she deserves an award.

I didn’t necessarily pay it forward to anyone this year — my husband helped a family on the side of the road and a friend in need, but I don’t recall any situation in which I helped someone to such an extent. Next year, I hope I can say differently. I’d like to brighten someone else’s day by taking a great burden off their shoulders. It feels so warm and comforting when someone else does that for me and my family.

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#Cultivate2012 Community

Community: (Because I still love Cali Harris’ prompt from 2010!) Where have you discovered community, online or otherwise, in 2012? What community would you like to join, create, or more deeply connect with in 2013?

This year I went deeper into the community of Lafayette, GA. Specifically, I’ve found community within the boundaries of my workplace. I work at the largest retailer in this town, so I socialize with quite a few regular shoppers and co-workers. Everyone’s so friendly and eager to hear about how life’s going for me. I feel like an accepted and welcomed member of the community. I discovered that several people here also enjoy anime, and I love that I was able to find other like-minded individuals.

In 2013, I’d like to find more community through Cultivate. I’d like to hand the mic over to others to share their experience of cultivating a life worth loving. I’d like to cultivate community through my tutoring and editing services. I’d like to build a community of clients who enjoy my unique teaching style. I might even want to cultivate community in the local school district. I’m considering becoming an English teacher, so we’ll see what the future holds for me.

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#Cultivate2012 Local Love

Local Love: Supporting local business cultivates your community. Tell us about a local business you discovered this year. What makes them stand out from the crowd?

I can’t pick between two great places — The Terminal Brewhouse in downtown Chattanooga and Dari Dip in downtown La Fayette, GA. Both were delicious finds this year. The Terminal is across the street from the Chattanooga Choo Choo, they brew their own beers and root beer, and they serve locally grown and raised food, including bison burgers. They’ve got a few good gluten free items on their menu, and they serve something called “Chuck Norris slaw.” No, it doesn’t roundhouse kick you in the mouth, but it’s got just the right hint of delightful spiciness to it. Their root beer is some of the tastiest root beer I’ve ever drank. My husband can attest that their beers are delicious — I never acquired the taste for beer, nor do I plan to.

The Dari Dip (pronounced “Dairy”) serves good Southern cooking, although we haven’t tried their meals yet. We’ve been too busy sampling their ice cream the past two times we’ve visited (the only two times we’ve visited, actually). The offer soft-serve, scoops, cups, cones, waffle cones, shakes, malts, smoothies, floats, and even banana splits. They’re a great little throwback hidden in Northwest Georgia.

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#Cultivate2012 Clients

Clients: Perhaps they’re customers. Perhaps they’re patients. Perhaps they’re clients. No matter what you call them, they are the reason you receive a paycheck. How are you nurturing the people who give you (or your employer) the money to support you? Are you cultivating a warm, welcoming environment for your clients?

Since I’ve only got one tutoring client at the moment, I mostly interact with customers at my job. I’m quite certain I cultivate great working relationships with my client and customers.

My tutoring client used to travel about two hours one way to utilize my sliding scale fees. When he moved to attend grad school, I offered to continue tutoring using Internet applications. I grandfathered him in at the reduced rates and gave him reduced rates for proofreading and consulting. It’s been a very rewarding experience, and I’m glad I can still offer him great tutoring services despite the distance.

When it comes to customers, I have a very important rule — how would I like to be treated? This rule defines my demeanor at work. I smile at everyone and chat with them to the point that I’ve been accused of flirting with customers. This is a half truth — some definitions of flirting include being friendly with customers so as to entice them to spend their money. If you assume that definition, then I’m absolutely a flirtatious little vixen. If you think of it as a sexual thing, I’m absolutely not trying to send the wrong signals — sorry, not interested, my dears! đŸ˜‰

All in all, I feel I cultivate a warm, welcoming atmosphere for clients and customers. I love seeing others smile back at me, hearing compliments about my smile and cheerful attitude, and engaging in conversations that build rapport with those who make my income possible.

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#Cultivate2012 Co-workers

Co-workers: Unless you run your own business by yourself or stay at home, chances are you interact with co-workers on a regular basis. How are you cultivating camaraderie in the work place? What can you do to support your co-workers?

When I’m at work, I tend to smile at everyone. I stop and ask how co-workers are doing, and I know that usually helps them feel better. They smile back and engage in quick conversations with me. I’d like to say I’m incredibly good at building camaraderie because everyone comments on how much I smile. I talk with co-workers about work, life, and family as we’re completing our tasks for the day. I engage in playful banter — my immediate co-workers like to joke around and be lighthearted. I appreciate that, and I encourage it.

At this point, I think I’m doing a great job supporting my co-workers and fostering a sense of camaraderie in the workplace. I want to continue to show my smile and be friendly. I want my good attitude to be an example. I want my co-workers to follow my lead, no matter how stressful life might be. We all go through rough times, but maintaining a pleasant attitude makes it easier.

I’d like to help co-workers experiencing difficulties more. Finances seem more stable, and I would like to contribute when we have dinners to support co-workers in need or are collecting funds for those experiencing hardship. They did it for me when our van broke down, and it helped so much. I’d like to pass that feeling on.

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