By Steve Walker
Now that we are in the
swing of things for the New Year, it is time to make New Year’s resolutions. Or
do we?
How many times throughout
the years have we purposed to make resolutions to lose weight, get a new job,
travel and spend more time with the family? At least my generation has
attempted that in past years. I am a baby boomer.
As I get older I make less
of an effort to “make resolutions.” I have come to the realization I tend to
fall far short of those pronouncements of determination. Whether it is a
proclamation to diet, exercise or just take better care of myself, I always
seem to miss the mark and then feel bad about it for the rest of the year. That
in itself is discouraging.
How can I purpose to
change my life for the better if I can’t even stick to a regiment of smaller
portions, more physical exercise and a plan to increase my financial income by
getting a new job or at least a pay raise?
Since I am currently
unemployed, a pay raise is obviously not in the cards as a viable option for me.
Finding employment at a more mature age has proved to be a daunting scenario to
say the least. Just because you resolve to accomplish it doesn’t necessarily
mean it is going to happen or at least any time soon. Part of making
resolutions is setting reasonable expectations.
The main ingredient for
making a resolution I have come to realize is expectation.
Looking back to last year
for example in my own life, I have reflected numerous times on my expectations
for the future, based on the past. With all of us at some time or other we have
many unresolved situations in our life that simply resolving to change our
circumstance can be complicated and be so much more than just a resolution.
Granted making a resolution
is but the first step into making that resolve a reality. Without trying to
make a simple New Year’s Resolution into a major hoopla, we continue to
re-evaluate our lives and give it a try to do something different for a
different outcome.
Remember Nobel Peace Prize
recipient Albert Einstein coined the adage “doing the same thing over and over
again and expecting different results, is insanity.”
Having said that,
something tells me that people, year after year will, make an attempt, however
strong or feeble, to set goals for
themselves for the upcoming year. As disappointed as I am in myself to
successfully follow through on the resolutions I have made over the years, I
know in my heart I will try again this year and all the years I have left on
the planet.
Maybe this year it will
work. I can only hope. Since my resolve again is to eat less, travel more, get
a job and make more resolutions, the end result will hopefully be different. No
more insanity.
And as always, what I
write is “Just a Thought.”
Steve Walker is a Vietnam
Veteran and former Justice of the Peace and Journalist.
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