Resolve

Every new year brings with it a choice:  the decision as to whether we set out an intention - a resolution.  There are those that are likely familiar to many of us:  to lose weight, to exercise more, to drink more water (and less alcohol)...  

In reality, by the end of the first week of the year, many of us will have reneged on our pledges.  No one else may know of our small failure, but this pattern strikes me as hardly the best way to boost self esteem.  The truth is that many of us are our own harshest critics, and the annual new year's resolutions, no matter how well intentioned, can simply become harmful ammo we aim at ourselves. 

A better strategy might be to shift our focus towards the obstacles that we are apt to trip over, and get to know these more intimately both enhancing our chances of their successful navigation whilst cultivating a deeper knowledge of ourselves, and of the full meaning of the lives we are so busy living.  

What we sometimes forget (forgetfulness being something most of us are prone to) is that we are maybe not prepared for the obstacles we will doubtless encounter.  Whilst we may sense that it is time to move forward, and we may even recognise the obstacles as those we have come across previously, we perhaps lack adequate understanding of ourselves or of the options we have available to us.  It is far easier to set off on a journey or a resolution than it is to be truly conscious of our motivations, or to really envisage the journey's course whilst all the while holding our intention in mind.  

The challenge is one of living skillfully, or mindfully.  Firstly, we need to understand how the mind operates, by becoming more expert in our reactions and our habits in order that we might calm our reactions and learn how to respond to life from a position that is unaffected by the unhelpful memories.  Only with this clarity, are we able to really see what it is that we would like to perhaps change at the dawn of the new year.  

Secondly, we need to become more consciously aware of our objectives:  understanding why it is that we are setting ourselves a particular goal is vitally important to its fulfillment, as it will help us identify what it is that blocks us from attaining those things we desire.   

Lastly, once we know our goals and understand the objectives that underlie them, we must resolve upon a course of action (for awareness alone will rarely invoke the changes we seek).  In doing so we let go of the passing year and welcome the new year with a fresh perspective on our journey, and heightened awareness of the goals that hold meaning for us.  

Though no one can go back and make a brand new start 

anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending.  

Carl Bard