The Dawn of a New Year
We
humanoids are essentially a species that looks for opportunities for
reinvention. With the dawn of a new year, we believe that the clock resets and
we can start over, hit reset, and reinvent ourselves to begin anew. That is why
we tend to make resolutions for bettering ourselves in the New Year. The
Chinese sweep out the old at Lunar New Year. We westerners vow to be better
versions of ourselves every January 1st.
I
don’t make resolutions because I’ve never kept to one for more than 5 days.
After 52 years of failing in my resolutions, I’ve abdicated that practice and
replaced it with my goals to focus on positive thinking. In my earliest Al Anon meeting in Hong Kong,
when my desperation and feelings of negativity blackened my heart, my home
group suggested that in times of difficulty, I should go through the alphabet
and try to think of something for which I was thankful for every letter. I’ve
practiced this exercise many times since 1993; however, my inventory is ever
changing. The basic list remains the
same. And while I strive to achieve these goals every day, it is important to
remind myself regularly to keep on my path to enlightenment, peace and serenity.
For 2013 I want to focus on the following:
A Accept what is
B Believe in a higher power
C Care about people I love and my
environment
D Decide to make every day a celebration
of life
E Embrace what is good in the world and
my life
F Find
the good in every situation; sometimes it may be hard – but there are always
lessons of value;
G Gratitude
is a key to contentment; be grateful for what I have;
H Happiness is not an illusion; it is
within us all;
I Imagine the endless opportunities we
have as citizens of America
J Joy
can be found in the simplest things – finding beauty in the song of a bird, the
beauty of a flower, the sound of the sea;
K Kindness
begets kindness; be kind and expect nothing in return;
L Love
completely, be loyal, value life;
M Make
every day special with a positive attitude
N Never
give into despair, there will always be a rainbow after a storm
O Opportunity
knocks; we just have to be open to the call and willing to take a risk; change
can be good;
P Practice
patience & positive thinking: when I do I feel contentment; when I don’t I
feel at a loss.
Q Quite
time alone for reflection and introspection is never wasted; it is healing.
R Respect
for the opinions of others can open our minds. At times I’ve been guilty of
pressing my opinion without give due consideration to the opinion of others. I
have to accept that opinion is not fact and in listening to others I may learn
something or change my mind.
S Spend
less. Things ultimately do not make me happier. People do. This is one of my
greatest challenges. I do not need more stuff. I need to use what I have and
appreciate the people who are close to me.
T Think
before speaking. For someone born during
the year of the Boar, this is a particular challenge. I could fit not just a
foot but an entire shoe store in my mouth.
U Understand
the world does not revolve around me.
V Value
the people in your life and your blessings.
W Welcome
new people into your life; they just may bring additional joy, blessings or
opportunities for growth;
X Xeriscape
- plan a sustainable landscape suitable
to your microclimate to utilize what is supposed to thrive in a particular
environment
Y Yellow
flowers in the spring make me happy. I love daffodils!
Z Zealous
appreciation of life brings fulfillment to every day!
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