Resolute
It's that time of year when we make our list of to do's for the upcoming year; join a gym, adopt a workout regiment, loose those extra pounds, quit smoking, make more time for friends or family. It's that time of year when we take a look at our lives, point of our flaws and vow to make serious change. "This year I will be better!"
But why? What really makes me better this year? Fitting into my jeans better? Or am I better because I will make a solid attempt to be a bit less of a prick in traffic...well at least until the teenager in the red convertible with the radio blasting, talking on the cell phone cuts me off?
My personal resolution list (if I had one) would look something like this;
1. Stop smoking (again)
2. Loose 20 lbs.
3. Take more naps
4. Be a better friend
5. Be a better student
6. Exercise more
7. Read more
8. Budget better (time and money)
The list could go on and on. But when I really think about making this list and all it entails, I realize I am simply picking apart my life, highlighting all that I see that is wrong and ignoring any progress or change I have made in my life. And not only that, but I feel like this list is pretty superficial; ego feeding.
The truth is, for the most part I have made significant positive change in most of the above arenas. The other important reminder for me is not to take myself so seriously. What good for humanity results from me loosing 2 lbs? Shouldn't my life changes be less about appeasing me and more about what's best for the big picture? Like not drinking less coffee, but drinking coffee as much as I want, so long as I do it in a sustainable way (for my pocketbook, but especially the environment, the farmers, the coffee brewers, etc.) Maybe I am a bit hard to follow with this one, but I think my point is, shouldn't my focus on change be more about a much larger picture; less about me loosing the 20 lbs. and more about eating properly to support local agriculture and lessen my impact on the world.
When I wrote my entrance essay to Goddard back in the fall of 2009, I wrote about change; the changes I had been through that brought me to Goddard and the changes I would like to see in the future, but most importantly, what really creates change? For some reason, over the last year, I have lost that focus and it's time that explore this again. Maybe it's the whole New Years resolution thing, maybe it's just finally becoming a lot clearer to me.
There are a million examples of dramatic change in our society and I am interested in exploring those stories; religious conversions, immigrations, interventions, and inventions. Examples of change are endless, but I will leave you with this one particular call for change by the late, great Tupac;
We gotta make a change... It's time for us as a people to start makin' some changes. Let's change the way we eat, let's change the way we live and let's change the way we treat each other. You see the old way wasn't working so it's on us to do what we gotta do, to survive.
But why? What really makes me better this year? Fitting into my jeans better? Or am I better because I will make a solid attempt to be a bit less of a prick in traffic...well at least until the teenager in the red convertible with the radio blasting, talking on the cell phone cuts me off?
My personal resolution list (if I had one) would look something like this;
1. Stop smoking (again)
2. Loose 20 lbs.
3. Take more naps
4. Be a better friend
5. Be a better student
6. Exercise more
7. Read more
8. Budget better (time and money)
The list could go on and on. But when I really think about making this list and all it entails, I realize I am simply picking apart my life, highlighting all that I see that is wrong and ignoring any progress or change I have made in my life. And not only that, but I feel like this list is pretty superficial; ego feeding.
The truth is, for the most part I have made significant positive change in most of the above arenas. The other important reminder for me is not to take myself so seriously. What good for humanity results from me loosing 2 lbs? Shouldn't my life changes be less about appeasing me and more about what's best for the big picture? Like not drinking less coffee, but drinking coffee as much as I want, so long as I do it in a sustainable way (for my pocketbook, but especially the environment, the farmers, the coffee brewers, etc.) Maybe I am a bit hard to follow with this one, but I think my point is, shouldn't my focus on change be more about a much larger picture; less about me loosing the 20 lbs. and more about eating properly to support local agriculture and lessen my impact on the world.
When I wrote my entrance essay to Goddard back in the fall of 2009, I wrote about change; the changes I had been through that brought me to Goddard and the changes I would like to see in the future, but most importantly, what really creates change? For some reason, over the last year, I have lost that focus and it's time that explore this again. Maybe it's the whole New Years resolution thing, maybe it's just finally becoming a lot clearer to me.
There are a million examples of dramatic change in our society and I am interested in exploring those stories; religious conversions, immigrations, interventions, and inventions. Examples of change are endless, but I will leave you with this one particular call for change by the late, great Tupac;
We gotta make a change... It's time for us as a people to start makin' some changes. Let's change the way we eat, let's change the way we live and let's change the way we treat each other. You see the old way wasn't working so it's on us to do what we gotta do, to survive.
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