For many people, the ending of the present year and the approach of the new signals a time for assessing one's progress—or the lack thereof. I suppose that if I were to gather all my old plans from years past and all the resolutions I was not successful at keeping, I would be over
whelmed! I could not possibly consider adding any new plans or goals because I would be so busy trying to re-do something from the past.
There is something to be said for persistence and for making another attempt at a previous goal. We must take into consideration, though, whether or not the old plan or aim is still appropriate. Does it fit our present life? Children outgrow their clothes, toys, and playroom furniture; sometimes we adults outgrow an ambition or a need or even a relationship. Trying to force ourselves into feeling the way we once did is something like trying to force a six-year-old to enjoy the rattle he liked when he/she was a few months old. Attempting to force-fit our lives into something we've outgrown is like trying to force the child into shoes that are too small. They simply don't fit any longer.
Is it failure to lay aside temporarily something we once thought was important—or even to give up on it entirely? Not necessarily. We can give our best attention to only a certain number of things. Circumstances change, and priorities can change. What was top-of-the-list a few years ago may be further down now, perhaps still on the list but not above everything else. We may decide that reading with the children comes before an immaculate house, and paying off the credit cards is more important than buying a new car but not as necessary as "Y" membership, and so on.
The coming of the New Year is a good time to re-evaluate our priorities. Let's not be bogged down with old plans so that we can leave room for the new!
MaryMartha
whelmed! I could not possibly consider adding any new plans or goals because I would be so busy trying to re-do something from the past.There is something to be said for persistence and for making another attempt at a previous goal. We must take into consideration, though, whether or not the old plan or aim is still appropriate. Does it fit our present life? Children outgrow their clothes, toys, and playroom furniture; sometimes we adults outgrow an ambition or a need or even a relationship. Trying to force ourselves into feeling the way we once did is something like trying to force a six-year-old to enjoy the rattle he liked when he/she was a few months old. Attempting to force-fit our lives into something we've outgrown is like trying to force the child into shoes that are too small. They simply don't fit any longer.
Is it failure to lay aside temporarily something we once thought was important—or even to give up on it entirely? Not necessarily. We can give our best attention to only a certain number of things. Circumstances change, and priorities can change. What was top-of-the-list a few years ago may be further down now, perhaps still on the list but not above everything else. We may decide that reading with the children comes before an immaculate house, and paying off the credit cards is more important than buying a new car but not as necessary as "Y" membership, and so on.
The coming of the New Year is a good time to re-evaluate our priorities. Let's not be bogged down with old plans so that we can leave room for the new!
MaryMartha
Art from http://www.sxc.hu/
No comments:
Post a Comment