The New Year Promise

As we enter another New Year, many of us have at least one promise or “resolution” we make for ourselves. Most of the time, we hardly get past January before we break it and then feel guilty over our lack of commitment to the promise. That’s just one reason that I’m not too big on resolutions.

Now that doesn’t mean I don’t start out each New Year trying to change something. This past year was a particularly busy one for me. I’m a do-er–always running, always busy, always doing something. I am rarely idle even at home; sitting still is just never an option. 90% of the time, my running has a specific and meaningful purpose. I don’t use my time foolishly. But I think in my busyness, there are a few things that have suffered. This year I would say my goal is to slow down a bit and re-focus.

If you’re always running, it can get hard to spend time with God. That, my friends, is most important time you will spend in your day. It is essential for your spiritual growth and well being. I feel I need to make more time to spend with Him. My drive to work is at least 20-30 minutes on a good day, so I’ve tried to designate that my prayer time, but there’s always room for improvement. Busyness can also take time away from the people you love. My husband and I do pretty well finding time. The kids are bigger now and one son is away at college so it’s not as hard as it used to be to be alone. And I always find time with my son that’s still at home. I must admit though, that this year in particular, it became near impossible for our group of friends to find a day where we could all gather together for dinner like the old days. I found that the busyness we all share kept us from being together and that was quite frustrating. It’s hard to change the fact that we all have things to do, but I’d love to find more time this year to be with the people that matter.

In many ways, I’ve also neglected myself. Having lost weight, then gaining some back, I’m back on the diet path. And I really need to find some time for myself. It’s not easy, but I know it will not only benefit me, but those around me.

I guess I could sum up my New Year’s goal by saying I want to be a better person. Both for me and for those I love. We are, after all, a work in progress. And although I really believe that we should be striving each and everyday to be the best person we can be, January 1^st seems to be a good time to make a new start of it.

I pray 2007 is a happy, healthy and prosperous year for all!

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