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Hello, 2014!

By Catherine Toth Fox • January 1, 2014 • Musings, The Daily Dish

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2013 was a strange year for me.

There were a lot of ups — like traveling to five foreign countries and eating things like coagulated pig blood on a stick — but the swing to the other direction was just as far. My sister was diagnosed with breast cancer, I injured myself more than I can count, and I’ve struggled with a marriage that didn’t last.

I’ve been anticipating the new year, thinking that 2014 would cancel out the negatives of the year before.

But here’s the truth of it: 2013 wasn’t really that bad. I traveled more than I’ve ever traveled before — with pals like Melissa Chang and Racie Botelho — to countries from Taiwan to Amsterdam. I’ve met incredible people, doubled my freelance reach, and did things like surf in Costa Rica and climb to the top of the Eiffel Tower that were on my proverbial bucket list. I even ran (kinda) the Honolulu Marathon.

2013 was a year of change. I stopped drinking as much Diet Coke. I fractured my shin. And, after 12 years, I officially retired from volunteering with the Cherry Blossom Festival.

And to be honest, none of it was bad — at least in hindsight.

Sure, at the time, much of what I had gone through was difficult and there were times I thought things weren’t going to get better. But somehow — and I credit awesome friends who love to eat and a mom who bakes me whatever I’m craving — I got through.

One of my dear friends told me once that we aren’t given anything in life we can’t handle. It’s not the easiest thing to believe when you’re right in the middle of it. But it sure makes sense after, when you can look back at the mess you’ve manage to wade through and see that not only did you survive, you’re probably better off for it, too.

That’s how I’m approaching 2014. I’m just going to take it as it comes and keep moving forward. What happened last year is done. I can’t fix it, I can’t change it, I can only accept it and keep moving.

And a few bottles of wine may help, too.

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About the Author

Catherine Toth Fox

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23 Comments

  • Reply Surfing at Sixty January 2, 2014 at 9:59 am

    Cat, Have a happy and great New Year!

  • Reply zzzzzz January 2, 2014 at 10:14 am

    Sorry to hear about your marriage. He seems like a very nice guy, and as someone who aspires to that also,it’s a bit disappointing to hear things didn’t work out for him as well as for you.

    But thanks for sharing that with us, and allowing us to vicariously enjoy the fun and excitement of that relationship.

  • Reply scrivener January 2, 2014 at 10:29 am

    <3

  • Reply Melissa January 2, 2014 at 10:41 am

    Coagulated blood on a stick was yummy. And here’s to more adventures together in 2014.

  • Reply travelmonkey January 2, 2014 at 11:02 am

    here’s to a better 2014 for everyone!

  • Reply hawaii2000 January 2, 2014 at 11:25 am

    And after all that, you’re still here sharing stories and pictures with all of your devoted readers. Mahalo and may every year to come be better than the last.

  • Reply jtoro January 2, 2014 at 11:53 am

    Sorry to hear about your struggles. I never considered 13 an unlucky number, and probably never will. However, 2013 will go down in my books as one of my least faves. I’m with you, learn from the experiences and move on. Here’s to an amazing new year.

  • Reply 808pooh January 2, 2014 at 12:29 pm

    Cat-

    From all that you shared with you last year i would never think you were going through that much in your life…I know you will break through 2014 with a lot of courage to take on the world!

    Myself 2013 was not a great year either. A relationship that was created 10+ years ago came to an end last year. And till this day i am still trying to put together all the missing pieces.

    This year will be all about changes and independence.

  • Reply Kehau January 2, 2014 at 2:42 pm

    So sorry to hear about your sister’s cancer, your fracture, and your marriage. Please know that you and your sister are in my prayers and I look forward to hearing about your sister’s recovery.

    Glad to hear you have picked up work and are open to the philosophy of “what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger”. I know these sayings are somewhat trite, but they help one to cope. One of my favorites is “this too shall pass”. There are times I have actually chanted that in my head! For months!

    Best wishes for a great 2014 and know that you are supported (even via the web!)

  • Reply Bumper January 2, 2014 at 4:32 pm

    I’m sorry for your sister’s diagnosis and your divorce. No one has a perfect life, and I always enjoying reading your blogs when it was very real and apparent that you were normal just like the rest of us. I like the food stuff, but I liked the real-life stuff even more. Best wishes for a better 2014

  • Reply Dennis January 2, 2014 at 5:09 pm

    Hi Cat! Sorry to hear about your sister and your marriage! My prayers are with both of you in 2014. I’ve gone through 70 years of these troubled times but there is a light in the tunnel! It gets better with time and lots of prayer. You take care and keep positive thoughts around you. The year of the Horse will be GREAT!!!

    • Reply rad January 2, 2014 at 5:21 pm

      Hey Cat ,We all will always have good health ,good friends ,and be living in a place that must be a slice of heaven. See you in the water…..Rad

  • Reply David Jackson January 2, 2014 at 6:16 pm

    Aloha Cat. Just remember you rock the house. And there is a lot of love out there for you, a lot of love. Hope to see you in HNL soon.

  • Reply kibo546 January 2, 2014 at 7:04 pm

    Hi Cat, this is my first entry… but I was a fan of your Daily Dish column while you were at the Advertiser until it ended and only picked up on reading your stories again in 2013 after my ex-husband and I separated. I too, ended a marriage in 2013 that didn’t last… and while this last year was a difficult one for me, it was also a year of experiences that I wouldn’t trade for anything else in the world. I just wanted to tell you that reading your stories and hearing about your adventures has inspired me to try live my life to the fullest every single day. I feel that in a way, your stories have helped me to heal… and I wanted to say thank you for that. My wish for you is that 2014 will be a fabulous year… and to always remember that there are a lot of love in this world 🙂 Life is truly amazing. Thank you so very much again.

  • Reply cw January 2, 2014 at 7:15 pm

    thank you so much for writing this. i swear i almost didn’t make it out of last year but now that i think about it of course i did. thank you for giving me hope. thank you for reminding me that i can get through it bad or good 🙂 🙂

  • Reply Tara January 2, 2014 at 7:52 pm

    Aw, Cat! I don’t know you personally, but I do check in on your blog. I was divorced myself in my twenties, but a handful of years later, things are looking nothing but up. I just wanted to offer some words of encouragement and let you know readers are thinking of you! Divorce sucks and it’s a real crap time, but there are so many good days ahead and you know so much more than ever before. Time for an amazing year 🙂

  • Reply The BC January 2, 2014 at 11:54 pm

    Cat,
    As an avid reader of your blog from “da old newspaper days….” Keep a chin up! You are a good person and I’ve enjoyed your continuing journey. If life gives you lemons, make lemonade! it will all be good. Better now than suffering for a longer time.
    All the best for 2014!… and beyond.

  • Reply WildeOscar January 3, 2014 at 6:02 am

    I saw this last year at this time, and kept it. It had meaning for me a year ago, and it still does. In light of your 2013 and hopeful beginning of 2014, I offer it here.

    “What can be said in New Year rhymes, That’s not been said a thousand times? The new years come, the old years go, We know we dream, we dream we know. We rise up laughing with the light, We lie down weeping with the night. We hug the world until it stings, We curse it then and sigh for wings. We live, we love, we woo, we wed, We wreathe our brides, we sheet our dead. We laugh, we weep, we hope, we fear, And that’s the burden of the year.”

    May 2014 be the best year yet in your life, and in those of your readers.

  • Reply Glenn D January 3, 2014 at 6:36 am

    Aloha Cat and hau’oli makahiki hou. 2013 is done and you are right – cannot undo.
    You got the right attitude – look forward and move ahead. I know that 2014 will be a better and a great year for you. Many mahalos for the great read.

  • Reply Annoddah Dave January 3, 2014 at 5:17 pm

    CAT: All the best for the coming year! Health and prosperity will hopefully abound. If nothing, you have us…which is better than nothing?!

  • Reply Ken January 4, 2014 at 5:23 pm

    Ouch! Sorry to hear about your trying year. Another poster and I both thought something was awry several months ago. I guess I have been reading your columns enough to notice a subtle change in 2013.
    Like they say in It’s A Wonderful Life, you touch other lives in ways you might not be aware of. I’ve been a fan since the Kamai Forum days, and meeting you at Kiwami Ramen last Nov made my family trip more special!

  • Reply M January 6, 2014 at 9:47 am

    Hello Cat,
    We all have struggles in our lives, we have the good times and bad times. Only GOD is perfect and I have faith in him that he will get me through the struggles that all of us have in our daily lives.

  • Reply Bernie January 6, 2014 at 3:17 pm

    Hi Cat,

    I enjoy reading your blog. Thanks for sharing your life highs and lows with your readers. I know many of us can relate to life’s ups and downs. I was rudely diagnosed with colon cancer in early January 2013, following a colonoscopy. I was fortunate that it was early stage and I fully recovered from it. The rest of 2013 turned out to be one of my best years.

    Wishing you the very best in 2014. You certainly have the right perspective on life

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About Me

About Me
Born and raised on O‘ahu, Hawaiʻi, Catherine Toth Fox has been chronicling her adventures in her blog, The Cat Dish, for more than a decade. She worked as a newspaper reporter in Hawai‘i for 10 years and continues to freelance—in between teaching journalism, hitting the surf and eating everything in sight—for national and local print and online publications. She’s currently the editor of HAWAIʻI Magazine.

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