Now, this is not to be confused with goals. Of course I have goals. Goals imply ambition. Goals reveal hope. Goals highlight a future. Resolutions suggest there is something wrong with me I need to change.
Two big realizations help me to resign myself to not committing to resolutions:
- I'm already a pretty decent version of myself, and I've worked hard to get to where I am -- personally and professionally. I am still a work-in-progress who is constantly changing and growing, and that's okay. At yoga just before New Year's Eve, someone said her goal was to keep being herself. Why can't that be all of our resolutions? What is wrong with that?
- The "resolutions" I want are ones I have no control over in life: Casey finding a rewarding and fulfilling career and getting pregnant. And this has been a great lesson in what I can control -- and an important realization for someone who likes and thrives in control.
So instead, this year, we are letting the three year old take the lead in life. For the last month or so, Mila responds to even the smallest of tasks with "Yeah! Let's do this!
"Mila, it's time to put your shoes on so we can go to the store."
"Yeah! Let's do this!"
"Should we go down stairs to have some breakfast, Mila?"
"Yeah! Let's do this!"
"Mila, go throw your garbage in the trash."
"Yeah! Let's do this!"
The excitement and energy in her voice for such a menial task catches me off guard. She's right. There is an adventure and amazement in every day.
We are embracing the three year old's motivation. This has become our motto for 2019, instead of a resolution. And honestly, it hasn't been easy for even the first 19 days of the year. But, thankfully, I married someone who is just as foolishly optimistic as I am.
And sometimes, when life tries to knock us back down, we add a "damn it" at the end.
