“We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are
going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its
first chapter is New Year’s Day.”
-Edith
Lovejoy Pierce
Friday, January 1, 2016
Happy New Year
Happy
New Year!
by
JudyI recently found a list of New Year’s resolutions I made over twenty-five years ago. At the top of my list was a resolution to always pick my children up from school, piano lessons, golf practice, birthday parties, or study sessions at the library on time. I did not keep that one. My children, now adults, have forgiven me and have overcome their feelings of abandonment. They have told me, though, if cell phones had been available during their youth, a call from me saying I was running late would have been appreciated.
Second on my list was a resolution to clean closets. As I thought back, the only time I remembered cleaning closets followed an unfortunate month -long problem with mice. While I did end up with better organized closets and found the jeans I thought gone forever, the mice did not fare well. I am making cleaning closets a resolution for the coming year.
Twenty-five years ago, my third resolution was to lose twenty pounds, and I’m happy to report, I had some success with that resolution. Oh yes, I’ve lost twenty pounds at least four or five times. Of course, I’ve always found those pounds. (Actually, they were all right there together—around my midsection.)
Another resolution was to not get out of bed before 5:00 A.M. I’m sad to say, I had no success with that one. My four children were spaced in such a manner that my years of having a child in high school lasted fourteen years. There were countless early morning trips to the high school parking lot for a child to catch a bus. My memory failed me when I tried to recall who went where during those years. I do remember, though, I was able to re-route my trip home so I could stop at the donut shop. No doubt, those donuts contributed to my finding the 20 pounds I lost. Funny, now that I don’t have to get up early, I naturally wake up early—I think it has something to do with my intake of fluids.
My old list of resolutions included one to not stay up past midnight, even if the party was at my house. These days I’m excited if I’m awake at 8:30 P.M., so I can change into my jammies for my 9:00 P.M. bedtime. I don’t worry about a party at my house lasting until midnight either. If any of my friends are able to party until midnight, I don’t know it since I’ve not been awake at midnight for years.
So now that I’m older, how do I celebrate New Year’s Eve? Most often, Grandpa and I celebrate it babysitting our grandchildren. We begin snacking around 7:00 P.M. We make a few resolutions and play Twister or charades. At 8:00 P.M. we put on party hats, blow whistles, ring bells, throw confetti, and wish each other a happy new year. Following that, the little ones that can’t yet tell time go to bed. I, myself, am ready for bed at 9:00 P.M.
What about the kids who can tell time? Oh, they are just fine with the plan. Last year I paid them $5.00 each to not tell the younger ones the real time, and after they pinky promised not to wake me, I let them stay up until midnight to watch the ball drop on television. It may cost me a little more this year, but….
Happy New Year everyone!
The Storyteller's Corner
The New
Beginning
by Collette
Some people think of spring as a new
beginning, a rebirth or a fresh start, but for me, it has always been the New
Year. It’s like I have a clean slate with nothing written upon it. I have
renewed hope and enthusiasm for what I can accomplish with the gift of the start of another year. It has always been a time of reflection about my
marriage, my children, my work and about me. Since I have always been a list
maker, this becomes my ultimate list-my plan for the future.
As I sit watching the snow fall while I
write my resolutions, I am reminded about which areas of my life I have
seriously made changes. I have probably done best in the job part of my life.
When one teaches you are responsible for many lives. In fact I have said many
times if a teacher cannot change, she better get out of education because that
is the nature of the job. Even if I hadn’t embraced change at the work place I
would have had to in order to keep my job. Luckily for me, I found making
changes at work a simple thing to do.
After 45 years of marriage, there have
been many changes in order to be married that long. Some of those changes were
hard and sometimes difficult to make. Going from a newlywed, to a mother, to
motherhood with a job, to a grandmother, to an empty nest and retirement have
changed both my husband and me. I have to admit sometimes I went kicking and
screaming into change, but I did it and grew in the process. Luckily for me, my
husband and I have been a team throughout those years.
Having two sons brought change with each
year. My plans for them were often not met; not because of anything they did or
didn’t do, but because they were each different and had their own plans and
goals. I learned more from them then I think they did from me. They have become
independent, successful men. What else could a mother ask for? Luckily for me,
they have done well with change.
The final area of resolutions was
focused on how I could do better with myself. Every year there was the goal of
losing weight and getting healthy. I know most women have that as a focus and
like most I haven’t done well in this area. As I face age and all of the
wonderful things that go along with falling apart, I do wish I had taken better
care of myself each new year. I have paid the price for neglect. I now set
short-term goals in this area. (My birthday is at the end of the month, and I
will try to keep the carbs at a minimum at least until then.)
So what shall I write down at the start
of this New Year? I resolve to spend more quality time with my grandchildren,
take more week-ends away with my husband, spend more time writing, work on
cutting carbs longer than January…
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