Dis(re)solving

Once again my friend Jessica has read my mind. Not only that, but she beat me to the punch (here). I say this because I don't want to be accused of plagiarizing, least she sue me for all my art supplies. Truth is, the two of us are such kindred spirits that I'm pretty sure we spend a lot of time camping out in the same cranial cavern. Worse things could happen.

Folks have been asking me what my New Year's resolutions are. I have none. Not a one. I don't do New Year's resolutions, that's why. Any time I hear people talking about them, I also hear Mary Poppins in my head saying, "That's a pie crust promise. Easily made, easily broken." Ever notice that come, oh... March, you don't hear anyone saying how great they're (still) doing with their resolutions? Uh huh.

My resolutions come daily from the moment I wake up and think, "What personal best can I better today? Which goal(s) will I begin marching toward, knowing that I might only accomplish a single step today?"

Resolutions are often unrealistic which makes them unproductive. Someone will say, "My resolution is to lose weight." Well, that's nice, but what are your goals? Are you striving for a pound a week? A dress size by Valentine's Day? Are you planning to eat salad for a month until that five pounds of Christmas cookie binging is gone? Then what? Wouldn't it be better to simply set a life goal and begin to eat healthier things?

Here's another thing that bugs me about New Year's resolutions. They are so often centered around physical things or material things. You don't hear people say, "I'm going to work on being more patient," or "I'm going to find a way to give some of my time and energy to someone who needs it."

So, I literally cheered aloud when Jessica said that if she was going to make resolutions they'd be things like being a better mother (though I have a hunch she's already damned good at that), allowing the art inside her to become tangible, making happiness part of her daily life.

We can't change the world, but we can change who we are in the world. And we can't change that by making some flip decision before we down a glass of champagne. It's a conscious millisecond-by-millisecond thing. Are you ready for that?! Because, like it or not, we're already in the moment. It starts now.

*****
Aaaaaand.... a Happy Birthday shout out to my friend Tim M. who turned me on to this great tune by Sara Bareilles.