Saturday, January 1, 2011

New Year?

Resolutions abound at this time of year. You could Google the word and find all sorts of them to choose from, including statistical analyses of the most common ones, instructions on ways to accomplish them if you make one, blah, blah, blah.

And, just as with every January, people will set out to be different "this year." They'll join gyms, give up coffee, give more to charity, eat healthier, complain less, spend more time with their kids, blah, blah, blah.

But the gym parking lots won't stay crowded. Churches won't be, either. And kids will go on being ignored or brushed away. Fat lost will be regained. Cigarettes will creep back in. Blood donations will drop before the need lessens. Soup kitchens will feed more people with fewer donations. Initiative for initiative's sake won't last. It never does.

So don't do it. Don't make a resolution for the year. You likely won't keep it up, and when your stamina or endurance falters at the end of January, you'll find it harder to keep going, to pick up when you miss a few days because life gets in the way. You'll give up. You'll feel guilty. You'll feel defeated. And nothing will change.

Instead, take just today. Not the year, not the month, not even the week. Just one day, today, or one hour--this hour--or even just one minute--and choose to act. Tomorrow doesn't matter. Next month doesn't matter. Only now matters right now.

If you're reading this, right now, choose. Choose what you'll do.

It's a small choice, yes. It's a short minute, or few minutes, or hour, yes.

Will it make a difference in the long run?

Yes.

7 comments:

  1. I choose to respond to this challenge before I go outside for my next cigarette and stop and grab some cookies on the way back in.

    I resolved long ago to never make a resolution other than to always allow myself to freely feel what I feel at the moment. Not the minute mind you but the single solitary beat of the heart. Think of it as a new lifetime in every single beat where I can feel differently now than I did 80 lifetimes ago.

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  2. I chose to read this post. Good enough in this moment. :)

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  3. so much to do and so much to finish before those fresh New Year’s resolution can be given birth. To even implement making one small positive change at a time and make it a habit would be grand then too soon comes the end of the year,,, and in reflection what can be seen looking backwards from our original list.... Never-the-less, I too join in this ritual as an opportunity to do better, and resolve to be a better person, -- I am not sure come the end of the year I have succeeded, for there is always moments that were less then glorious. . But one thing that was worth while this past year was the joy of meeting even though many of us never actually met, but through the written words all the wonderful bloggers along the way.

    May this new year 2011 to be filled with creativity and beauty and peace, and bring you great joy.

    cheers,
    joanny

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  4. One of the best studies of new years resolutions shows that (wait for it):

    Those who resolve keep up their resolve better than those who do not resolve.

    SO--

    I dunno. It seems the study may be more useless than resolutions.

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  5. I chose 3 creative things! :)

    1. Reading this blog. (which I love!)

    2. Joining A River of Stones International Writing Project www.collagepirate.blogspot.com
    The designers of the project are brilliant!

    3. Starting my own creative project: THE CAPRA PROJECT: Capra and the Magical Goat Blanket, a diversity/unity project based on the Romanian tradition of Dancing Capra.
    www.thegoatborrower.blogspot.com

    Have a bright and wonderful New Year!
    I love your POV!

    ~Mimi

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  6. i resolve to live through cancer/ chemo. anything else is a bonus. i like the idea of focusing on a given minute/ moment to charge your new year. good luck and happy new year. have a great day.

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