This begins my second year of sharing View(s) From My Window with you. For those of you who provide feedback, whether positive or negative, it nourishes my energy level to know that you are reading and thinking. Thank you.
As 2024 comes to a calendar close, we think about the plans for 2025. For many it seems like a fresh start, in common with the beginning of spring, or the start of the school year, bringing a time for new growth, or learning and activities even if we are not classroom students.
Today we are going to focus on New Year’s resolutions. I was surprised to learn from an Internet review that resolutions are not really that modern, but occurred as early as 4000 years ago. Babylonians pledged to repay debts and return borrowed items. This early form of self-improvement set the stage for the resolutions we know today. As a geographic reminder, Babylon was located on the Euphrates River, and on modern maps Babylon is 50 miles south of Baghdad.
TIME magazine reflects these as the usual resolutions: Lose weight and get fit; quit smoking; learn something new; eat healthier and diet; get out of debt and save money; spend more time with family; travel to new places; be less stressed; volunteer; or drink less.
People tend to go too hard, and too quickly on their resolutions. Frequently the goals are not achievable or simply over idealistic. Just over half (53 percent) say they managed to keep some, but one in six (17 percent) admit they did not keep any of their resolutions.
The reality is there is no point in setting the same resolutions you have been making for years on end, only to feel disappointed and down on yourself.
Remember what Albert Einstein said: Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
Consider for a moment why you have not lost that weight, exercised more, changed your job, or built that storage shed in the backyard.
Perhaps it is more appropriate to establish Anti-New Year’s Resolutions!
Let go of comparing yourself to others: Compare yourself only with who you were yesterday.
Let go of unhealthy relationships.
Let go of perfection. Do not let excellence stand in the way of good.
Let go of tasks. Some activities are not worthy of your time or energy.
Let go of what you cannot control.
All the above means managing your energy supply to stay a relatively happy and a useful human being.
So, this year, make a change. Take stock of where you are and what you want out of life. Do not feel the need to continue doing what others expect you to do or what you think might make you seem or feel more successful or more appealing.
New Year’s resolutions or anti resolutions are a method to embrace change and growth. Whether you are establishing big goals or diminishing expected values, the spirit of self-improvement is a great way to start the year.
VIEW FROM MY WINDOW is shared by Mary Weaver of rural Rippey.
