Looking back and Looking ahead

I hope each of you had a wonderful holiday season and start to the new year.  2021 was a great year for me and for our family and 2022 appears to have almost unlimited potential.  I feel very blessed by the Lord to be where I am, doing what I do, and pray for continued opportunities to make a difference in the lives of those I get to work with.

First, here are the highlights of 2021:

  • Our family welcomed two new grandchildren to the fold.  William Daniel Ryan was born on April 30 and June Lovett Ryan was born on May 22.  They join Charles Theodore Ryan (Teddy) in the fold and bring smiles to our faces daily.
  • Staying with the theme that good things come in pairs, I got a new left hip in June and a new right hip in December.  The change each of these brings to my mobility and life is amazing and I am thankful to have access to wonderful healthcare services here in Franklin at the BJIT and also to have a world-class surgeon in Dr. Brian Perkinson.
  • I launched my second Vistage group in February and built my initial group to 16 members during 2021.  Vistage has become the primary work in my life and I really enjoy the people I get to work with.
  • Gena and I took a couple of great trips last year.  We ventured to Daufuskie Island, SC in the summer and then to Las Vegas, Zion NP, Grand Tetons, NP, Yellowstone NP and then Montana in October.  The trip to the west was amazing and the beauty there is hard to describe.  I cannot wait to return.

Plans/Goals for 2022:

  • Gena and I are planning to embark on a European River Cruise in July of this year.  We will take that trip with another couple we have known for many years and I hope the pandemic allows us to make that trip.
  • I am currently working to launch my third Vistage group in February of this year.  Building a group is an involved process and I am working with a large group of business owners to put this new group together.  My goal by the end of the year is to have 50 members total in all of my groups combined.
  • We will take a family trip to the Florida panhandle in September of this year.  These trips with the boys, their wives and their children are great and we have a special guest this year who will go with us.  It is shaping up to be a grand time.
  • With the new hips in place I plan to get my weight down ten pounds by December of this year.  That will take my BMI to a more normal level and also help reduce the wear and tear on my body.
  • I also plan to finish the first draft of my second book by December.  The second book is still an enigma, but I feel the need to put more down on paper.  We will see what develops.
  • Last, but not least, I want to find a way to engage and support or mentor more young men.  I have been fortunate to have had some great mentors in my life and I feel called to help younger men, especially fathers, in helping them understand better how they can play a role in their families both mentally and spiritually.  Having dads be the faith leader in a household makes a big difference in how the family grows.

That is all I have for now.

What are your plans for 2022?