Resolved This Day
I don't generally do New Year's resolutions. I find them pointless. For one thing, I know that 99.999.....% of all resolutions made on January 1st are long since broken and forgotten by January 31st, so why bother? And for another, what's so special about January first? Why not make resolutions on September 23rd? Or May 17th? Or the winter solstice? Or Flag Day? Aside from needing to change our calendars on 1/1, isn't one day pretty much like any other? And finally, why wait for a special day at all? If you need to make a change in your life, why not just start today?
This year is different, though. I'm not sure how I even came up with this, but I've decided that in 2007, I need to be more appreciative of what I have. That's my goal for the next 12 months.
For example: I've been spending the last couple of months getting my music collection on my hard drive. (Don't tell the RIAA!) As I went through my CDs, I found a lot of discs I haven't listened to in months. In my classical collection, there are probably at least half that I didn't listen to at all in 2006. I have a lot of great music at my disposal, and I've not been listening to a good chunk of it. That's something I hope to change in the coming year.
Books are much the same story. Remember all those books I said I'd like to read at the beginning of 2006? Yeah, not really so much. Of the 18 books listed, I actually read six—a less-than-impressive 33%. A cursory glance at the bookshelf in the office reveals almost 20 books I own and have never read. Admittedly, two of them were Christmas gifts, but still, that's a lot of unutilized reading material. So there's another challenge for 2007.
The scriptures are a special example of the previous item. I have a set of scriptures I bought about 10 years ago. As I've been looking through them, I've noticed an interesting pattern in each of the major 'books' (Old Testament, New Testament, Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants + Pearl of Great Price). At the beginning of each, the pages are well-worn and marked in detail. Further on in each book, however, the markings diminish and the pages seem more like new. Translation: I do a pretty good job of scripture reading early in the year, then my reading falls off as the months go by. So I could be much more appreciative of the scriptures, and not just this year.
And there are other things. I've fallen behind in my MA program, and I'm going to have to hit it hard this month to catch up. I found that I don't say "Thank You" as readily as I could. Nancy keeps teasing me that I don't buy her flowers (although I do buy her Pepsi, which I'm pretty sure she likes better anyway). I have half a dozen old friends that I don't call or e-mail nearly often enough. And so on.
So there it is. I've actually made a resolution for 2007. How will I do with it? I haven't a clue. But the way I see it, just being aware that I need to be more appreciative of all that I have is a pretty good start.
This year is different, though. I'm not sure how I even came up with this, but I've decided that in 2007, I need to be more appreciative of what I have. That's my goal for the next 12 months.
For example: I've been spending the last couple of months getting my music collection on my hard drive. (Don't tell the RIAA!) As I went through my CDs, I found a lot of discs I haven't listened to in months. In my classical collection, there are probably at least half that I didn't listen to at all in 2006. I have a lot of great music at my disposal, and I've not been listening to a good chunk of it. That's something I hope to change in the coming year.
Books are much the same story. Remember all those books I said I'd like to read at the beginning of 2006? Yeah, not really so much. Of the 18 books listed, I actually read six—a less-than-impressive 33%. A cursory glance at the bookshelf in the office reveals almost 20 books I own and have never read. Admittedly, two of them were Christmas gifts, but still, that's a lot of unutilized reading material. So there's another challenge for 2007.
The scriptures are a special example of the previous item. I have a set of scriptures I bought about 10 years ago. As I've been looking through them, I've noticed an interesting pattern in each of the major 'books' (Old Testament, New Testament, Book of Mormon, Doctrine and Covenants + Pearl of Great Price). At the beginning of each, the pages are well-worn and marked in detail. Further on in each book, however, the markings diminish and the pages seem more like new. Translation: I do a pretty good job of scripture reading early in the year, then my reading falls off as the months go by. So I could be much more appreciative of the scriptures, and not just this year.
And there are other things. I've fallen behind in my MA program, and I'm going to have to hit it hard this month to catch up. I found that I don't say "Thank You" as readily as I could. Nancy keeps teasing me that I don't buy her flowers (although I do buy her Pepsi, which I'm pretty sure she likes better anyway). I have half a dozen old friends that I don't call or e-mail nearly often enough. And so on.
So there it is. I've actually made a resolution for 2007. How will I do with it? I haven't a clue. But the way I see it, just being aware that I need to be more appreciative of all that I have is a pretty good start.
posted by Michael at
12:14 PM
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