“Year’s end is neither an end nor a beginning but a going on, with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us.”

- Hal Borland

It’s that time of year again, when we reflect on the past 12 months and decide if we are on the right track or the wrong one, if we are going to keep on keeping on or rather forge a new path with the hope of finally getting where we want to go.

Are you planning to make a New Year’s resolution? If so, is this a ritual you feel you have to do, with the best intentions but also the intuition that in about two weeks, life will have gotten in the way and you are back to where you originally started?

You know, you are not alone. Resolution is a big word and carries a tremendous amount of pressure.

According to statisticbrain.com, 45 percent of Americans usually make New Year’s resolutions, yet only 8 percent are successful in achieving them.

The list of most-made resolutions doesn’t really change from year to year. The top 10 for 2015 included:

•Lose weight

•Get organized

•Spend less, save more

• Enjoy life to the fullest

• Stay fit and healthy

•Learn something exciting

•Quit smoking

•Help others achieve their dreams

•Fall in love

•Spend more time with family

These are great life changes, but they are huge in scope. Each can be an overwhelming task when faced with all the daily commitments we already have.

Why not take baby steps toward each goal, like taking the stairs instead of the elevator just once more each day or drinking one additional glass of water?

I admit I make a resolution each year, and it has always been the same one: to make the most of the time spent with my husband and daughters.

I’m not talking about expensive trips to restaurants and vacation spots, but rather just being in the moment with them and not thinking of the countless tasks that also should be accomplished that day.

There have been times when I’ve been able to do that; so often, though, I allow my to-do list to distract me.

But I think it takes an actual moment in life, not just the spoken word, to make one realize the resolution is worth achieving.

For me, that moment came when my older daughter went off to college. Suddenly, spending time with her required an hour drive or a scheduled FaceTime.

Since she has been home for the holidays, I have truly made the most of each minute. We’ve shopped, we’ve had great conversations, we’ve watched “Friends” for hours on end – all the while, I’ve stayed in the moment.

And the laundry, the dishes, the dusting all waited.

Wishing you a life moment that makes any resolution worth working for.

“Life is about using the whole box of crayons.” – Author

unknown

Kelly

Lutterschmidt

editor

Catasauqua Press

Northampton Press

Whitehall-Coplay Press