New Year 2016: A Time for Living Courageously!

New Year:  A Time for Living Courageously!

I love the words of what is commonly known as The ‘Serenity’ Prayer:  God, Grant me the serenity to Accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can, and the Wisdom to know the difference.   (Reinhold Niebuhr)  This could easily be deemed the ‘Manifesto for Maturity’ - - If only I had been practicing this adage, as well as I preach its theory.   For the bulk of my life, I focused more on changing my parents, husbands, children, friends, and past, rather than changing me.  Judging and criticizing was my cowardly way of avoiding looking at me.  Honestly taking one’s inventory with the same scrutiny we take others’ requires humbling courage.   Courage is cultivated by each foot we plant outside of our comfort zone.

  

As I sit here debating whether or not to go out on New Year’s Eve or to comfortably stay at home, I suddenly realized that I probably need to do what is counter intuitive for me in recognizing this yearly milestone.  If I am a person who justifies staying home more often than not, then I need to get myself away from the familiar and expand my experiences  by  attending a New Year’s Eve celebration.  On the other hand, if I am a chronic social butterfly, I more than likely should stay at home to reflect quietly on the annual toll of the midnight bells.  Either requires making a courageous decision to live differently.   We all know that New Year’s Eve is just another day and too many people have unrealized expectations, but it still has symbolic significance as an end and a new beginning in all of our lives.

Which leads us to the idea of ‘New Year’s Resolutions.’  Cynics find this tradition ridiculous, claiming that failure inevitably ensues.   This assumes that everyone’s goals are so lofty, that none are realistically  attainable.   First, the fact that someone reflectively recognizes a need for change and makes a conscious decision to effect a change in their life is a courageous act in itself.    This first step is often the hardest.  The fact that a person makes a plan and takes action to achieve their goals, for a week or six months, is another step in the right direction.  Remember, it is progress, not perfection.   Self- awareness is a major component in the process of ‘changing the things I can.’    Resolutions are not merely about getting rid of bad habits.   Wisdom is not gained from doing the same thing over and over again, but is derived from expanded experiences which encompass something new and unfamiliar.  Thus, a resolution can be the decision to enhance one’s creativity, service, spiritual meditation, social interaction, knowledge, health, relationships and understanding.   The smallest positive change in any area of one’s life is measured as a success, and will lead to a happier New Year 2016 !