Who Keeps Resolutions?

It seems like everyone makes New Year's resolutions. I'm going to spend more time with my family, or lose some weight. I'm going to quit smoking, for good this time. I'll make it to church every Sunday, reduce my debt, and look for better job. All kinds of things make it onto someones list of resolutions.

Why do we make them? Does anyone actually keep theirs? I know that I normally make one, and normally, fail, but why? Why fail, and why bother?

I made a few resolutions this year. Quit smoking being the first, followed by spending more time with my children. They, in a way, go hand in hand. I don't smoke around my kids, I go outside. So every hour or two, I go outside for 5 or 10 minutes, and watch my children through the window. It's heartbreaking, if I stop to think about it, and I do not like it. I want to be able to go do something with them without cutting out trips short, or stopping partway through because mommy can't breathe well enough to keep up with a 4-year-old.

As for actually keeping them, that's an entirely different story. I have cut back on smoking, down to about half a pack a day, which from my normal pack and half is awesome. I could do better. I know I could, but it's frustrating. Every time I make a resolution and slip up, I feel like a failure and give up, to some extent. I think that may be why hard and fast resolutions don't work for many people. We get to a point that it seems like we're already behind the curve, so just give in to the easy path of falling back on old habits.

I make resolutions, but I have started to think of them more as short-term goals. Within the next year, I'll quit smoking, etc. It makes it feel less like a deadline and more like an attainable goal. I think this year I might be able to do it, if I don't get to down on myself. If we stop beating ourselves up about them, I think we'll find New Years resolutions more enjoyable. And hey, if that fails, next year, I'll resolve to eat more french fries, have a drink at least once a month, and buy shoes.

I know I can achieve those.