The new year has begun along with the opportunity to make a meaningless New Year's resolution all in the name of self-improvement that will likely be forgotten before February rolls around. Looking back on some of my past resolutions that I did not stick to, ranging from working out more to eating more vegetables, I tried to think of a resolution that I could really stick to this year.
Of course both working out more and eating healthier came to mind, but again I'm looking for something I won't abandon within a week. Cutting back on coffee comes to mind, but without coffee, I function at about 25 per cent of my normal self. This just sounds like a lose-lose situation for anyone I encounter in my life.
My next idea: spend less and save more. This is a pretty universal one, but certainly not easy. I don't even know where I would begin; fewer shoes, less take-out coffee? My brain is already spinning from this one. Moving on.
Get more sleep? I suppose this sounds easy in theory, but there just aren't enough hours in the day, and something else would have to suffer.
I think about all my past resolutions and possible ones for this year and consider what they have in common. They're all about self-improvement, but why do they all have to be so hard? Why does improving one's self have to be synonymous with deprivation and suffering?
Then I thought of something that would improve the quality of my life without causing me any hardship. My resolution is to put more effort into my relationships.
During my trip home for Christmas, I was lectured by friends and family alike for how naughty I was at staying in touch. One of my girlfriends even suggested that maybe my phone had a problem receiving messages. I sheepishly admitted I had gotten them, but "didn't have time" which essentially is synonymous with, "I am busy, and did not find time to answer you. I am a terrible friend."
There really are no excuses given all the technological ways of keeping in touch. If my parents can figure out how to use a webcam, I can make the effort to turn mine on. I made promises to many dear friends that I plan to keep. Letting down someone you care about is certainly worse than forgetting to follow through on some half-hearted attempt you made to yourself to eat more vegetables, or something similar.
I applaud those people who are able to stick to a big resolution such as quitting smoking or losing weight. But for those of you like me that have never been big on resolutions, consider giving your relationships a little extra face-time, phone-time, twitter-time, and whatever else they come up with next.
I'm sure everyone's mother would appreciate more frequent phone calls.
I know mine will.
