Hold on to your resolutions with both hands

Lakeia Thurman
Staff Writer

The year 2012 is here at last and many of us, myself included, are filled with excitement and anticipation about the possibilities this year can bring, while others are indifferent and consider it to be “just another year.”

New Year.  The phrase conjures up images of all night parties, kissing strangers at midnight for luck, and drinking until  the only year you can remember is 2012! But New Year’s isn’t just about kissing the past year goodbye, it’s about reevaluation and self-reflection. This is the perfect time to examine everything that happened to you the past year, whether good or bad, and to take the lessons you learned and apply it to 2012.

It’s the time to  reevaluate the decisions you made and think about what you may have done differently. The new year is the catalyst for making changes within ourselves, to sit and think about the person we were last year and decide if we want to change not only other’s perception of us, but our own perception of ourselves. We, as humans, are continuously growing and changing we never fully stay the same.

For instance, I’ve sat and thought about everything that I did and said in 2011 and I’ve reflected that the person I was then will not be the person I am now in 2012. My New Year’s resolution is to not only do well in all my classes, but to become a better person.

Every one of us has been asked that dreaded question: “What’s your New Year’s resolution?” And if you’re anything like me, you needed a minute to make up something noble and unrealistic.

According to USA.gov, the top ten most common New Year’s resolutions are: 1) Lose weight,  2) Get fit, 3) Eat Healthy 4) Get better grades/go back to school, 5) Manage money better, 6) Communicate better  7) Be more confident, 8) travel, 9) Quit smoking/drinking, 10) Spend more time with loved ones.

Although these are the most common, people make many different types of resolutions. For example, “I’m going to be a nicer, kinder guy,” said Andrew, a little boy I happened to meet, but sadly right after saying that he threw his pet puppy across the sreet. This just goes to show that its easier said than done to stick to even the most positive of resolutions.

There are plenty of resolutions that we hear the people around us say, but never get around to actually doing.

Take one of my friends for instance, he decided his New Year’s resolution would be to go on a diet.  Five days after Jan. 1st, he gave up and gave in to three baked potatoes and a chilli-dog. The type of diet that my friend engaged in may have been the reason that he gave up on his resolution to lose weight. There are many different types of dietary programs out there, but finding the right one for you can be complicated.

My friend was on the Formula diet, a weight loss plan that replaces one or more meals with a liquid formula. Because of the diet he chose, he set himself up for failure. How can a person who is use to eating cheeseburgers and pizza go to drinking liquid brocoli and cheese? In my opinon, the Exchange-type diet would have been the better and easier one for my friend to stick to because it is a meal plan with a set number of servings from each of the different food groups.

Diets are never easy to stick to, but people have to know who they are inside and choose a diet based on their preferences.

How many of our friends actually follow through on their New Year’s resolution? In the past we would say not many, but this is a new day! It’s 2012 and anything is possible. President Barack Obama is proof of that! As the First (and hopefully not last) African-American elected as President of the United States of America, we see that something that many of us believed could and would never happen in our lifetime, especially those of us in the South, is possible.

So I have faith that everyone that has a resolution  in mind to keep trying and to not give up. The fun is in attempting your goal, that’s what matters.
As for my New Year’s resolution, I’m holding on to it with both hands because I’m determined to keep mine.

The views expressed in the commentary are those of the writer(s) and in no way represent the views of The Blue & White Flash.