No Year's Resolutions

Photo of house lit up for Christmas taken by Tom Karlek on an early-morning walk in the snow. (Date unknown.)

1. This year there will be No Year's Resolution about getting and/or staying "organized" -- whatever that term means to you. (To me, it means having a place for everything, having everything in its place -- and being able to remember where that place is!) I've made that resolution. In fact, I've made it every single year since I've known that people make New Year's resolutions. I have found that it only works for about an hour and a half every morning. (It depends on what time I take my ADD medication.)

My passion for organizing can only last until I find something else to focus on. You know -- like while I'm trying to get all the tax stuff together in one file, I might come across some photographs I've saved so I can make clever greetings cards from them. So then I have to search for my stash of stickers and card stock. In the process, of course, I find dozens -- perhaps even millions -- of nifty little craft items shoved into a cupboard, just waiting for the perfect occasion unleash my creative genius -- hey, why not now.....?!!!

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2. There will also be No Year's Resolution in 2009 about trying to do only one thing at a time. I keep reading about how multi-tasking -- which is the one skill I have come closest to perfecting -- is not necessarily a desirable skill to have. Hence, the nagging sense that perhaps I should try to focus a bit more on doing only one thing at a time. But wait! How do they know? What if doing just one thing at a time -- even something one truly enjoys -- can cause one to be so overcome by languor that one just shuts down and decides to take a nap? How desirable is that?

I say that for some of us, multi-tasking is a necessary survival skill -- one we should work harder at mastering! There is no limit, people! I've seen glimpses of a paradise where one can write a novel, knit a sweater, create a fabulous outfit from recycled denim and old sweaters -- and load the dishwasher -- all at the same time!

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3. 2009 will see No Year's Resolution about becoming a better listener -- even though that was practically my mother's dying wish for me. Hey -- it's not carved in stone that that was her last wish, ok? She told me "You should listen the first time," almost an entire week before she died. I prefer to think that her final -- albeit unspoken -- wish for me was that I should find it in my heart to do nice things for people because I truly care; that I would learn to trust my instincts about what to do, because even if I did listen to what they were saying, I would probably forget within the hour anyway.

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4. There will be No Year's Resolution this year about not yelling at my family so much. Because I DON'T yell at them that much -- They just say that I do! That's because we're all so used to pushing each other's buttons, and then reacting to the response we expect to get, that we no longer even pay attention to what's really happening...

For example: My son has done something he knows is dumb -- like telling me over the phone that, yes, he did bring in the the mail, knowing full well that he hasn't -- and then forgetting to go out and get it immediately after hanging up the phone. A couple of hours later, when, upon returning home from a weekend trip, I go out to the mailbox and find said mail, he no sooner sees that my mouth is open -- before even the faintest sound has been emitted -- and he says "Stop yelling at me!" So then, of course, I have to yell at him, resolutions be damned!

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5. Finally, there shall be No Year's Resolution this year about setting and meeting goals for healthy living, productivity, and/or prosperity. I found out this past year that -- especially with regard to health -- I'm really not in charge anyway. So why not just trust everything to the One who is in charge? That way, I may be able to keep a resolution not to worry so much. Trust, when it can be accomplished, feels so much better than worry!

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So here's to trusting 2009 to God, and asking Him to constantly show me which way He wants me to turn -- which path to take, what words to say, what I should do -- always! (Amen.)

Oh -- Happy New Year, Bloggees!