January 2, 2010
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It’s January 2, and I’m wondering how many New Year’s resolutions have already been forgotten, mere hours after they were made. A promise whispered to oneself is so easily not kept. Who would know? What would be the consequences? Who would feel let down? It’s no big deal, right? Easily spoken, as easily broken. Perhaps it is better to simply not make them, if they are, in the end, meaningless?
And just look at the big picture. A glance back upon the last couple of years brings visions of turmoil and unrest in our country, the troubling insecurity of the financial market, the rumors…and reality…of war, the threat of a fragile, crumbling environment, a picture of a government riddled with corruption and lies…No resolve on one individual’s part will make a whit of difference in light of those monumental concerns.
So, maybe it is easier and better to skip the New Year’s resolutions this year. What difference does a little self-improvement make, if the rest of the planet is going somewhere in a handbag?
That is what some would have you believe. I don’t believe that. I do believe we need times, situations and occasions that inspire us to look into our hearts and lives honestly, to see the gaps and holes, sore spots and weak places. Then we feel the desire to make vows of renewal, promises of improvement, to find hope for healing and to make a commitment to change. Would we do this without a New Year’s Day? An anniversary? A birthday or other milestone occasion? Without these specially-marked, set-aside-on-the-calendar dates, the busyness and routine of ordinary life would consume the hours, days and months, even the years.
We need a little Christmas…and New Year’s…and the 50th anniversary party and the Fourth of July…and Thanksgiving. We need a calendar day…right this very minute…that reminds us to resolve to try harder, to lose that extra 15 pounds, to finally give up those cigarettes, to get up 30 minutes earlier each morning to read a really good Book, to get outside and get walking, to get a grip on our finances, to really commit to living greener, to look around for ways to help our neighbors in need, to…fill up those gaps and heart-holes, heal the sort spots and strengthen the weak ones. We need special occasions…or we won’t do it.
So, what is my New Year’s resolution this year? I’m only making a single one, and this is it. I’ve realized how much I need some self-rejuvenating time in my regular schedule, no matter what. And where do I find that precious healing? I find it in my sewing room and I find it when I put words on paper (so to speak, for this looks like a piece of paper I’m typing on.) But weeks and weeks go by when I don’t sit down to write or sew, and those are the times when I begin to feel my life spin out of control. So, for 2010, there will be specific notations on my calendar for sewing and writing. Pens and needles. I need them as much as I need food and water and exercise and spiritual sustenance. And so I resolve to find time for them, in the same way, by making them a priority.
Happy New Year to each of you, my xanga friends!
Comments (8)
Beautifully put and wonderfully said, Janet.
Pens and needles, I like that! Mary’s kind of resolutiion. Blessings!
This is one of my favorite places in xanga… I am never disappointed. I love the way you put words to your ‘paper’.
Wonderful resolutions … good for you, my friend!
Rick’s right, that’s my kind of resolution! If I don’t sit down with myself regularly (writing or sewing/x-stitching/crocheting) I start to spin out of control too. I make New Year’s and birthday (in July) resolutions—even if I don’t keep them all, at least I’ve improved a little. Hey, improving the world starts by looking in the mirror!
I, like you, also tend to skip the personal time. I used to sew….not so much any more, but I loved to. My other thing was working on music selections. I can get in there, on the piano or organ, and get lost….forget about time……..but recently, have not done that, unless someone NEEDS me to play for them, then, much as I love working with music, it becomes a “job”. I like music to be a relaxation, not a ‘job’.
I also enjoy writing about my life for my diary, then blog it on this. Seems blogging encourages me to keep my diary current. I wasn’t doing it regularly, before my daughter introduced me to Xanga.
I hope you have a GREAT NEW YEAR!!!
We had a whole sermon today on resolution sort of topics. i felt left out because I haven’t the least intention of making a bunch of changes. I feel like I’m just starting to get things right, I’m not going to start messing with what is just now working.
Very thoughtful post. I too tend to not make New Year’s Resolutions. The whole business seems so superficial to me…make em, break em. But I like yours…a guarantee to see more of you here!