5 Things: The Real Deal

I said I would post on this blog five things I resolve to accomplish this year and I said I would post them before the end of January. I said each of them will be significant and, for me, life-changing. They may not shake up the world, but here they are:

1. Begin the process of building a family compound in ‘Falba’
   I have title to two acres of land. One of the two acres has been partially paid for by a brother, but I think he will be willing to cede it to me or share in ownership. He owns another, adjacent, acre. I've often talked about building a 'compound' where all members of the family can gather with their extended families, a place that my wife and I can retire. Unless I win the lottery, I won't have much money on which to retire, so I need to plan now to have a place to live. I believe I can muster the money and the will to build a place on that land, a place that will have sufficient room. I don't necessarily plan to complete building it this year, but the foundation will be laid before year's end.
   
2. Encourage conversations on my blog, and then beyond my blog, about ways each of us, readers and writers alike, can make significant differences in our communities
   Time Magazine bestowed 'person of the year' on You. It was, in my view, a just recognition for all of us who have the capacity to make differences and who do, simply by communicating with one another. I want to be a bigger part of You by engaging in conversation and discussion and debate about how each of us can make a difference, whether it be in our own little neighborhoods or in the larger community of our states or our countries or our planet. It seems that these sorts of conversations tend to take place more frequently around elections and certain holidays...I want them to take place year-round. I want them to move from the Internet into our individual lives. I'd like this blog, and other blogs whose authors share my sensibilities, to be a place where we share specifics of how we can and do make a difference, year-round.
   
3. Become at least modestly proficient in conversational Spanish
   I hear people complain about visitors to this country...and people who move here...failing to learn our language. I understand the concern, but I also appreciate the difficulties they face in uprooting their lives and moving into a foreign environment. When I visit Mexico, I feel that I am missing so much because I do not speak nor do I understand the language. By learning Spanish, I believe I will be able to better appreciate my visits to Mexico and I will be able to better communicate with people who have come to this country from Spanish-speaking countries...and perhaps my facility with Spanish will enable me to have conversations with them that will allow me to persuade them that it is in their best interest to take the time and the effort to learn English.
   
4. Help create a sense of community in my Dallas neighborhood
   This relates to my desire to turn this blog into something that makes a difference. I want to do more than talk about the importance of community. It's easy to talk about it and it's easy to complain that no sense of community exists. But my neighborhood's lack of a sense of community is not its fault...it is my fault and the fault of my neighbors. We can, if we try, turn it around. Whether it happens remains to be seen, but I want to try. So, beginning today, I shall.
   
5. Submit at least one piece of fiction for consideration for publication
   Like talking about building a sense of community, talking about submitting something for publication doesn't make it happen. My commitment is that I will finish at least one of the dozens of things I've started and make a concerted effort to get it published. I know, from personal experience in the business world, that getting something published gets me fired up to do more. So, I'm going to work on generating my own motivation by getting that first piece of fiction in the marketplace, with the expectation that its ultimate acceptance will provide the fire in my belly that I sometimes lack.

OK, so those are my five things. I'd be interested to hear about your one or two or thirty things...things that you are committing to do for yourself. I'll be reporting my progress from time to time and I hope you will report yours.