Opening to the Spirit
Today’s word: Resolutions
But the daily countdown begins when we open our eyes - with each sunrise, a new year dawns.
Who will I be today? Resolved, just for this day to be my best version of the one I wish to become.
2) Resolutions are about commitment. When we resolve to do something, it means we mean business. Last week our word was intention and I used the image of the rudder on a boat, guiding us to what we want to accomplish. Resolution is more like a legal decree. The gavel pounds and the sentence is given.
That’s it, we say to ourselves, no more sitting around watching Netflix! Let’s go for a walk every night instead. We might resolve to do something even more important: to give more money to a cause or to change our lifestyle for the benefit of the environment.
The problem with some of our resolutions is that they lack resolve. We have a general sense of what we want to change but without the kind of firmness that we need. The best resolutions involve observable, concrete behaviour. If you resolve to be kinder, then you can notice and encourage yourself to do things that are kind: to check in on a friend who is struggling, to offer more praise, and to respond to the needs of others in concrete ways.
Maybe your life is just fine the way it is, and maybe there are some resolutions you would like to make. Choose well and be strong. We can all do our best to make the world a better place and we can all start with ourselves.
3) When it comes to personal resolutions, like getting more exercise, eating healthy meals or getting eight hours of sleep a night, I have to admit I have a chequered success rate. Personal resolutions are easy to break when no one is watching, especially when one lives alone. The moment a bar of chocolate enters the house my attention is repeatedly drawn to it. My ability to limit my intake of said sweet is severely hampered.
The best strategy for me to keep my resolution is to make a pact with others. That is why I enjoy having a walking partner and a workout trainer who are expecting me to show up. Whether it be limiting my use of plastic, maintaining a meditation practice or taking up yoga, when I belong to a group of like-minded folks, my practice is more consistent and successful.
When we commit to showing up for one another, we each are stronger in our own right. It is one more proof that no man is an island.
4) People who know me are familiar with my “to do” lists which I usually produce weekly. Some of my categories are: meetings, baking, writing, sports, church stuff, or shopping. Usually I manage to get most things done, except perhaps when I go to the grocery store and leave my list on the kitchen counter. My resolutions give my life a bit of order. The only problem is that I can depend on them too much and if something doesn't make it to the list it gets easily forgotten, like the library books that I recently returned two weeks late.
Resolutions are a good thing. I know people make jokes about them at New Years time, and for some simply writing them down seems to assuage their guilt about not actually making productive changes in their lives. The older I get, the more I realize that making lists isn't enough. I am on several committees where certain items remain on the agenda, things we never actually intend to deal with. Resolutions without action are meaningless.
The world we live in has many challenges; poverty, famine, racism, war and climate change, and our reconciliation with indigenous peoples to name a few. I'm sure each of you could add more items to the list. Many of these have been studied to death. The time for making resolutions has passed. It's time to act. What are you willing to do in your own communities to create a better world?
One word, four voices - now it's your turn: Do you make resolutions, how, when and why?
Rev. Mead Baldwin pastors the Hatley, Waterville & North Hatley United Churches; Rev. Lynn Dillabough is now Rector of St. Paul's in Brockville ON. She continues to write for this column as a dedicated colleague with the Eastern Townships clergy writing team; Rev. Lee Ann Hogle ministers to the Ayer’s Cliff, Magog & Georgeville United Churches; Rev. Carole Martignacco pastors Uuestrie – the Unitarian Universalists in North Hatley.