I haven’t made New Year’s
resolutions for a number of years, and a few weeks into 2017, I am reminded
why. My resolutions have already
fallen by the wayside.
My first resolution was to avoid
the chocolates and cookies left over from the holiday.
But, the chocolates presented a
problem. They were artisan truffles
with a best before date. There were two options. I could eat them or put them in the trash. Since I really dislike wasting food, the
best tactic was to finish them as quickly as possible. Get it over with, so to speak, which I
did with great satisfaction on January 3 when I restricted myself to eating one
at a time until the box was empty.
The cookies, conveniently frozen
in neat layers, pose a continual challenge to my willpower. The freezer is a short distance from
the TV viewing area in the basement of our home. As any teen will tell you, there is something
irresistible about frozen cookies. And, it is indisputable that commercial breaks trigger a trip
to the pantry, or in this case, to the freezer. If I continue to watch even one hour of television per
night, I will have decimated the cookie supply in a few more days. I resolve to bake less next year.
Fortunately, I exercise
faithfully so there was no need for me to resolve to get fit, which is one of
the most common New Year’s resolutions of all time. Still, those sweets are
definitely not good for my waistline, and I might have to kick up the workouts
a notch this month.
I could rationalize my chocolate
and cookie consumption. Dark
chocolate is good for my memory, and the pistachios in the shortbread add a
little extra protein, energy and anti-oxidants to my diet. Overall, though, I
have to admit that my nutritional resolutions are a bust.
I’m not doing so well on my other
resolutions either.
One of those caused my daughter
to roll her eyes. On New Year’s
Day when she asked if I’d made any resolutions, I responded, “Yes. I’m going to
do more edifying reading.” I
should have known from her reaction that I was being way too ambitious and
ambiguous, (not to mention pompous as well).
Like most people, I struggle to
keep my resolutions. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. We set ourselves up to fail with
resolutions that are too broad, too sweeping, too vague. If we are serious about achieving our
goals, we need a better strategy than just making a pronouncement about our resolutions.
So, I’ve decided to start
over. With the chocolates out of
the way, I will deal with the cookies in a sensible manner. First, I will not watch television
downstairs, thus removing the temptation to snatch frozen cookies during
commercial breaks. Second, I will treat the cookies as a dessert and not as a
snack. (It really is quite obscene to treat cookies like potato chips. Cookies
deserve more respect.) Third, I will enlist the help of my husband, and
encourage him to eat frozen cookies.
As to my grandiose goal to read
more edifying material, I will make a modest list, set aside a specific time
and place to read, and go at it, slowly.
Goodness, I have just made a
bunch more resolutions.
I hope my
strategy works, but if not, next year I will take my cue from my
son-in-law. He readily admits that
he doesn’t believe in making New Year’s resolutions. He tries to live well, always, every day. Now, there’s a resolution worth
struggling to achieve.
