Here we are again with a perfect year to start fresh! The year is 2010 and the beginning of yet another great decade of learning, growing, and Loving. Every year I ask my family and friends “what is your new year’s resolution?” and get the same five or six responses. The most popular are to spend more time with the family, lose weight and get more fit, quit smoking, quit drinking, get rid of debt and be more organized. Then I hear the random ones of helping others more often, start volunteering, and learn something new. All are perfect resolutions and I am glad to see that we all put the effort into bettering ourselves and the world around us but, we will be discouraged if we don’t live up to these resolutions and in the long run (usually by February) will ultimately forget them.
Every day we meet new people and are in new situations that give us opportunity to learn something new and we may be surprised at the gems of wisdom that can affect us profoundly in our lives. We need to fully embrace the fact that it is essential that we acknowledge that everyone is valuable in their own way and is special. If we make a new years resolution to take an extra step in being a bit more compassionate, understanding, and kind to everyone we come into contact with, we will have the potential to enrich our lives in such a big way! All relationships whether brief or a lifelong friend can help us to open our eyes to new worlds of joy and happiness.
We need to remember that when we meet someone who we dislike or rub us the wrong way we still need to have that same compassion, while examining our own feelings carefully. Usually the reason that we may dislike someone who is different is because they compel us to question our own values and ideologies while threatening to undermine our self-assurance. We need to treat others how we would like to be treated, not how we are treated. If we treat a negative acting person with negative reactions, we are becoming that negative feeling. Our thoughts become who we are in our daily lives. Every action creates a reaction and we want to create a wonderful day for everyone we meet on our journeys in life. We need to start this new year with a positive attitude and spirit so we can work toward not only the best year of our lives but the best decade as well!
My point here is to start the new year with a new beginning and not just a new year’s resolution! We all make goals and work toward them on a daily basis, but what we may want to do are make changes to our thoughts as well. This in turn will help us on our way to reaching the resolution goals and to make us a bit happier while having a lot of fun along the way. Always remember that as long as we do better today than we did yesterday then we are heading down the right path in life. We all have the ability to make this a better world and should start with ourselves, our families, and our communities. Even the simplest gestures of a smile, holding the door open for the next person, or a quick wave can change the day and life of a stranger, so start embracing the beauty around us and make 2010 the best year of our lives!
Have a fun day,
Mike Keller
