My “Anti-New Year’s Resolution” Resolution

Years are numbers.  They’re merely demarcations of the calendar introduced by Pope Gregory XIII, in 1582.

But they also represent frontiers of passage.

As 2015 ends and 2016 begins, millions of New Year’s resolutions will come, and then pass.  Some pledge to go on diets and improve their health.  Others take on new projects or vow to complete unfinished tasks.  Many renew aspirations to be better people and improve relationships with family and friends.  Most of our annual reaffirmations are sincere.

Still, I’m puzzled as to why we need one specific day on the calendar to make constructive changes in our lives.  What makes every January 1st so special?  Why not February 3rd?  Or July 17th?  Or October 24th?  Instead, can’t there be 365 opportunities to turn over a new leaf and do something good?

I wonder — might New Year’s resolutions be counterproductive?  After all, most of us will break our vows within weeks, if not days.  We’ll lose a few pounds, then go back to ordering the cheesecake for dessert.  We’ll clean out the garage, only to watch as other junk piles up slowly in place of what’s been discarded.  We’ll tell those we cherish how much they mean to us, then go right back to bickering.  This isn’t cynicism.  For most of us, it’s reality.  It’s a fact.  And sometime around December 31, 2016, the merry-go-round of self-deception will return us back to where we started.

I don’t see the purpose of playing the New Year’s resolution charade.  Seems to me that vowing to make a change is far more credible when not prompted by what amounts to the timeline’s energy drink.  January 1st is nothing more than a Red Bull.  It’s an artificial stimulant.  Rather, I believe the most sincere pledge is organic.  Modification stems from within and doesn’t require public pretension.  Borrowing Nike’s famous slogan, we can “Just Do It” anytime we so chose.  We don’t have to rely on January 1st or any other date to do something meaningful in our lives.

This same belief applies to the holiday season.  People do seem to be more cheerful in December.  I enjoy the holidays as much as anyone.  But I also wonder why the joyous spirit doesn’t apply year-round.  After all, the weather is much nicer most other months.  The daylight lasts longer, at least in the Northern Hemisphere.  Shouldn’t we all be much happier in June and July?  So, let’s just pretend it’s Christmas in the summer or spring, or fall.

Self-awareness isn’t seasonal.  Acts of kindness shouldn’t have due dates.  Inspiration doesn’t have showtime.  Whether we like it or not, changes are happening all around us.  Change is perpetual and universal.  Events influencing our lives don’t pay attention to matters of personal convenience.  When we do make a conscious choice to change something in our lives, we must be empowered with the realization that we hold the remote control and our fingers are on the buttons.  If we don’t like the scene we’re involved in, start pressing and change the channel.

I’m not opposed to making New Year’s resolutions.  But I’m not a believer in them, either.  Every new day of our lives involves making a series of resolutions of some kind, and for the most part, managing to keep them.  We get up in the morning, we get to work on time, we pick up the kids from school, we fulfill the daily responsibilities expected of us.  We succeed.

Unfortunately, all those seemingly small daily successes are largely forgotten — because we still end up ordering the cheesecake at dinnertime.  When we get home, the garage is still cluttered with junk.  We’re still at odds with others.

That’s okay.  Tomorrow is a new day, and time for a new resolution.

We should be defined, not for our failures nor what we don’t accomplish.  Instead, let’s encourage ourselves and each other for something which is vitally more constructive — which is to keep on trying.