Perpetual
New Year Resolutions
Let this coming year be better than all the
others. Vow to do some of the things you've always wanted to do but
couldn't find the time.
Call up a forgotten friend. Drop an old grudge, and
replace it with some pleasant memories. Share a funny story with someone
whose spirits are dragging. A good laugh can be very good medicine.
Vow not to make a promise you don't think you can
keep. Pay a debt. Give a soft answer. Free yourself of envy and malice.
Encourage some youth to do his or her best. Share your experience,
and offer support. Young people need role models.
Make a geniuine effort to stay in closer touch with
family and good friends. Resolve to stop magnifying small problems
and shooting from the hip. Words that you have to eat can be hard
to digest.
Find the time to be kind and thoughful. All of us
have the same allotment:
24 hours a day. Give a compliment. It might give someone a badly needed
lift.
Think things though. Forgive an injustice. Listen
more. Be kind.
Apologize when you realize you are wrong. An apology
never diminishes a person. It elevates him. Don't blow your own horn.
If you've done something praiseworthy, someone will notice eventually.
Try to understand a point of view that is different
from your own. Few things are 100 percent one way or another. Examine
the demands you make on others.
Lighten up. When you feel like blowing your top,
ask yourself, "Will it matter in a week from today?". Laugh
the loudest when the joke is on you.
The sure way to have a friend is to be one. We are
all connected by our humanity, and we need each other. Avoid malcontents
and pessimists. They drag you down and contribute nothing.
Don't discourage a beginner from trying something
risky. Nothing ventured means nothing gained. Be optimistic. The can-do
spirit is the fuel that makes things go.
Read someting uplifting. Deep-six the trash. You
won't eat garbage - why put it in your head? Don't abandon your old-fashioned
principles. They never go out of style. When courage is needed, ask
yourself, "If not me, who? If not now, when?"
Walk tall, and smile more. You'll look 10 years younger.
Don't be afraid to say, "I love you". Say it again. They
are the sweetest words in the world.
Happy New Year. Different New Year! Better New Year!!
Be encouraged.
<< Letter # 37 (28.12.2003)