It's the beginning of a new semester, and also still the beginning of a new year. Although the festivities of New Year's Eve are in the past, for many people New Year's resolutions are very much a part of the present.
It has only been about 17 days, give or take a few hours, since these resolutions were made and I hope most of you can still honestly say that you are living up to yours.
However, if you didn't choose to converge with the masses and resolve to improve your life in some way this year I think that's OK too. Based on my experiences, I haven't encountered many people who were able to sustain their goals for the New Year throughout the month of January, let alone the entire year.
Personally, I don't even remember what my past resolutions may have been. This makes me fairly confident that I did not continue with my resolve to improve myself for very long.
I think the problem with New Year's resolutions is that a lot of the time people don't really commit to them. They make up a resolution whether it's to start working out on a regular basis, to quit smoking, or to spend more time doing volunteer work not because they truly want to do these things but because they feel obligated too.
New Year's resolutions are a tradition that dates back to Babylonian times, and because they are still so popular in society today who wants to be the oddball who doesn't make one.
However, if you really want to change something about yourself or your life, shouldn't you be able to do it any day of the year?
Life is complicated enough as it is; do we really need to have the added pressure of New Year's and its dreaded resolutions looming over our heads on top of all the daily stressors we encounter?
If you really are dedicated to changing yourself for the better or resolving to change something else that you think could use improvements and just need that extra push to get started, then I think New Year's was created for you. However, I don't think we should need a set day too encourage us to make changes. If you want to change something I think you should just go out and do it, take the initiative and start whenever you feel like it.
There's no reason to wait until next year to make a resolution, so if you missed the deadline of midnight on New Year's Eve this year, don't worry about it, start today.
I didn't start my resolution until returning to campus. In fact, I wasn't even going to make one simply because I couldn't think of anything that I thought I wanted to change. Once I had moved in and worked up an appetite after struggling with my luggage however, my resolution came to me.
I'm going to eat in the dining hall this semester. There will be no more spending money on snacks at Meijer or Target, no more ordering Jimmy John's at all hours of the day. I'm going to use the meal plan I paid for instead of spending extra money on food.
I've been here for three days now and I've been to the dining hall three times. At least it's a step in the right direction.
I hope you all find success with your resolutions as well. Good luck.
