This year, be more selfish.
Pursue the things you want. Ask people who interest you for their time and attention. Say no to the ones that do not excite you, chase the ones that do.
This year, discuss what interests you. Bring your thoughts to the table. Ignore the minutiae. Change the subject. Do not listen to people tell you what you already know. Interrupt the people who interrupt you. Remind them you were speaking. Remind them your thoughts are worth speaking.
This year, take what you need. Sleep until you are no longer tired. Drink when you are thirsty. Eat when you need to eat. Stretch when you’re wound too tightly. Rest when you are exhausted. Leave situations that harm you, even when others beg you to stay.
This year, demand your feelings be respected. Express your boundaries. Enforce your boundaries. Push back on people who push you. Know you are worth the love of people who respect you. Leave the people who do not. Do not swallow your sadness. Do not leave your anger smoldering in the pit. Express your pain. Know your pain is worth expressing.
This year, play the ways that excite you. Follow your impulses. Act on your desires. Please yourself. Do not worry about being an experience. Move on from the people whose wants will not mesh with your wants. Ignore feelings of obligation. Remember you are a human, not a haunted house.
This year, touch your partners in the ways you want to touch them. Make them enjoy the touches you want to give. Enjoy their bodies, their movements, their expressions. Bite them, if it helps. Wrestle them into your preferred positions. Wrap your legs around them. Put their body parts in your mouth.
This year, let yourself fail. Let yourself be wrong. Care way too much. Move past your failures. Grow from your mistakes. Hurt the people you care about. Ask forgiveness. Remember that the people around you are stronger than your fuck-ups. Let yourself be forgiven.
This year, give yourself permission to be everything the seasonal zeitgeist says you shouldn’t. Ignore the words like “selfish,” “stubborn,” “aggressive,” “needy,” and “demanding” when what they really mean is “put yourself last.” You should be a higher priority than anyone who tries to guilt-trip you. This year, be selfish – value yourself.