By Kathleen M. Muldoon
Happy New Year! Ah, yes, another new year-a time to start all over again, a time to rebuild ourselves into new and improved models. At least that’s my goal each new year-is it yours, too? These desires for improvement are often called “New Year resolutions” and are formed with the best of intentions. If you’re like me, each January 1, you choose one or two things about yourself that you think just might need improvement. Also if you’re like me, you work on those things for about a day or two and then decide that the old you is good enough, thank you.
One year, though, I went hog-wild and actually worked on a whole slew of resolutions for a month. I was half- way through eighth grade, and I decided I needed a total makeover. I still remember the list of resolutions I wrote in my diary:
• I will not slouch.
• I will not gossip and will only say good things about everybody.
• I will not be jealous.
• I will not eat any sweets.
• I will do my homework without being told.
• I will brush my hair 100 strokes each night.
• I will keep my nails buffed and polished.
As you can imagine, the hardest of these resolutions for me to keep were the ones that began “I will not . . .” When I showed my grandmother my list, she laughed and said, “I don’t know that I will be able to stand living with someone so perfect.”
I have to say that I kept the hair and nail resolutions the longest-maybe even into March of that year. The first one that I broke regarded not eating sweets. On New Year’s night, my Aunt Georgie came over to visit. She and my Uncle Al owned a bakery and tea shop. Can you see where this is going? Every time they came over, they brought a box of something delicious. This particular night it was my favorite, chocolate éclairs. Right then I made a new resolution: to avoid being totally perfect, I would need to break one resolution. I crossed the “I will not eat sweets” off my list.
The day we returned to school after winter break, my friend Mary Ann couldn’t wait to tell me the juiciest rumor ever! Another friend, Liza, was absolutely in love with a boy in ninth grade named Daniel! Now, this was too good to keep to myself and, really, I needed to tell our other friends. After all, this was good news. And, since I wasn’t sure good news qualified as gossip, I told one or two other people. But then Liza cornered me and told me that she didn’t even like Daniel, and…well, you get the picture. Another one of my resolutions went down the drain.
I won’t bore you by going into detail about the demise of each of the others, but let’s just say that by the end of March, my hair was a bit shinier and my nails were in allright condition, but by then I had come to a conclusion: I really was fine, just the way I was. Now, this is not to say that I couldn’t use some improvement, and I still can. But do you know what I’ve discovered over the many past New Years? Life is boring if there’s no improvement to be made. Who wants to be perfect? Then what? So this year, I’ve made one resolution: I will start off each day in a good mood. No more grunting and groaning, no more shuffling around until I have my first cup of coffee, no more complaining about having to feed the cat before I feed myself. If I really work at it, I figure I’ll be cheerful at least through mid-January.
Have you made a resolution for 2007? You can share it by emailing “Kids in Action” at action@unitedspinal.org, or you can mail it to:
KIDS IN ACTION
Action
United Spinal Association
75-20 Astoria Boulevard
Jackson Heights, NY 11370-1177
I look forward to reading about the new and improved you.
Kathleen M. Muldoon is a children’s book author and writing instructor for the Institute of Children’s Literature. She lives in San Antonio, Texas.
