Wednesday, January 18, 2012

I Resolve to Do More of the Same in 2012


As 2012 approached, I wondered if I would feel compelled to make New Year's resolutions. I'd done it in the past, and it had been an effective way to review what I'd accomplished as compared to the goals I had set, and what I'd like to do in the coming year. But my new, more laid-back self recoiled at the thought of it. Instead, I wrote a letter to Santa Claus.

In the letter, I asked for a few things--some small, some large, some material things, some experiences--because in the act of asking, I made my desire for them real and the manifestation of them more likely. Sounds a lot like a resolution to me, only without the normal thoughts of, "Will I really do it this time?" or "If I can't make this happen, I'm going to feel bad."

But the more valuable part of writing this letter to Santa was the justification. Rather than putting myself neatly into a naughty or nice column, I recounted to Mr. Claus all of the beautiful changes I had made in my life in the last year, how I had let go of so much that wasn't serving me well, how I had grown spiritually and emotionally, the major lessons I had learned, and how I was just an all-around nicer person.

It was the act of writing what I had done to move forward in 2011 that made me realize how I had set the stage to continue that momentum in 2012. There was no need to make New Year's resolutions. I am already making my dreams come true.