They say you can’t teach an old dog new tricks…

Well, in 2026, I’m just trying to remember that I’m a dog.

Did that make sense?
I don’t know, but that’s kind of the vibe I’m stepping into in 2026. Just trying to make sense of life again.

I think we all reach a point where we’re forced into some serious and honest reflection about where we are and where we’re heading. Eventually, you hit a stress point where change needs to happen and that’s where I find myself today.

This blog is just a short post and a bit of a mind-dump of some things I’m working through, trying to get better at, and navigating through some pretty intense circumstances that I honestly wouldn’t wish on anyone.

2025 was a big year.

Like…
BIG.

It was big for my personal life, our family life, my creative work…almost everything went a little bit wild.

But in and among the dirt and the chaos, I learned some really important things. Some of those lessons required immediate action. Some will require future action. And some just needed time and space to sit with before I could even decide what to do with them.

So in 2026, after everything that happened, one of my main goals is simply to relearn who I am…. my flaws, my strengths, what I’m capable of, and how I can be the best husband and dad possible… while also continuing to grow creatively and deepen my connections here in Canberra.

The phrase “I’m just trying to remember I’m a dog” isn’t me putting myself down or calling myself worthless. (Although Brooke and I do joke about it when we’re not happy with each other’s responses.) It’s really just my way of saying I’m learning how to be me again.

I think there’s something powerful about rediscovering yourself.

Between the chaos of the world, the 24/7 news cycle, endless social media, and the explosion of AI, it feels like we almost never stop long enough to actually listen to our own thoughts.

And I mean really listen.

Questions like:
Why am I feeling this way?
Why does my mood change so much in certain environments?
Why do some healthy habits never seem to stick?

That’s what I’m giving myself permission to do in 2026.

To sit with those questions that have been pushed to the back burner for far too long because of circumstances, because of survival, because sometimes life just happens. I genuinely believe that taking the time to face those things will make me better for it.

And once I remember that I’m “just a dog,” maybe then I can start learning new tricks again but this time, as myself.

Here’s to a new year.
And to keeping it simpler.

And if you’ve stuck with me this far thank you. I really appreciate you all.

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
— John 14:27

The Mortz