A Reasonable Resolution For 2014

Every year, millions of people make a resolution to change in the upcoming year.  Lose weight.  Exercise more.  Go back to school.  Scratch off an item on their bucket list.  Try to keep a plant alive for more than a couple weeks...

Every year, millions fail.  

I am guilty of failing for many years.  Quitting smoking turned out to be a success, but weight loss after quitting smoking has been a disaster.  Exercising has been a bust as well.  The more weight I gained, the more tired I became, the more tired I became, the less motivated I was, the less motivated I was, the more I ate.

So, as my husband and I consumed pie, cookies, and candy over Christmas, talking about starting a diet on the first of the year (same discussion every year), I started to feel the disappointment set in.

I hadn't even started yet and I was already failing.

I made a momentous decision about what I'm actually resolved to do.  I'll try to eat healthier and lose weight, but I often try this every few weeks so it's not really a resolution.

This year, at the end of each day, I resolve to write down the most memorable thing that happened to me.  Whether it was laughing hysterically, crying, getting angry, smiling for no reason, or just a quiet moment holding a purring kitten...  

I will write down the one thing that stuck out the most to me that day and at the end of the year, I will open that jar and read the little pieces of paper.  I may add a small token of a memory.  I may even share my experiences with my husband.  

I will take stock of what my year consisted of and learn from it.  Did I spend too much time mad at my husband?  Did I laugh a lot?  Was I a positive or negative person?

Next year, the resolution will be to focus on those good days and try to eliminate the bad.  Like counting calories for my spirit, I resolve to fix myself from the inside out.  One day at a time.

You can't lose a hundred pounds overnight and you can't heal your soul in a breath.  A year-long project to choose the right resolution for myself, one that won't fail.  To become a better person, mother, wife, friend.