These aren’t the resolutions you are looking for

After hours and hours of laborious research I have discovered why people actually make New Years resolutions, but you can probably find the reasoning for it on a Wiki of some sort so I am not going to bother explaining why here. Suffice it to say I believe making New Years resolutions is a stupid concept as I keep breaking mine, so I am resolving not to make any more.

At least not New Years resolutions.

To be completely honest (another resolution) my research on this subject was a little more limited than I might have said it was. Basically I Binged it (so under-rated as a search engine), looked at the Wiki article and then quit. Why you may ask? Basically as it is all a bit boring and even worse the Wiki thingy stated ‘A New Years resolution is a tradition……. in which a person makes a promise to do an act of self-improvement or something slightly nice, such as opening doors for people beginning from New Years Day’.

Say what?

Some people might make a resolution to open doors for people; you have got to be kidding me. If your resolution is to open doors for people then you need to take a long hard look at yourself, author of that particular post. You should already be opening doors for people. Making a resolution to open the door for people is kind of like making a resolution not to be such a complete dick. A real resolution should be to stop touching choristers if you are a Catholic Priest, to stop supporting Trump if you are a rational human being, to stop watching Fox News if you want an unbiased view on the world or to stop, just to stop, believing in all the crap that propagates on social media.  Who is more foolish, the fool or the fool that follows him?

So why do we need to make resolutions in the first place? Aren’t we perfect the way we are? My Mom told me I was perfect, once, years ago, and I am holding onto that belief. I mean a Mother wouldn’t lie to their children would they? WOULD THEY MUM? Ok, so maybe we are all a touch off perfect (means a small amount for those who have trouble following the way I abuse the English language) but does that mean that there is only one day that we can resolve to make changes to who we are? Rhetorical question because the answer is ‘Of course not’. Sure sometimes we need to remind ourselves not to be a dick every day (I am using the Royal ‘we’ here) but resolving to get healthier, be nice, work harder, play harder, read awesome blog posts (or actual useful stuff) should also be something we do on a daily basis.

I have a friend who quit drinking when they had their first child, actually seems like the time to really kick the drinking into overdrive but each to their own. I have another friend who quits smoking this time every year, obviously he is not a good quitter J Others vow to get fit, eat healthy, stop swearing so much (ok, that might be one of mine), spend more time with family and less time with enablers (that one is usually directed at me) or some make some other kind of resolution. There are a myriad of them. But why make them on a night when you are inebriated just because some wiki article said you should? Make resolutions on a daily basis. Reinforce them on a daily basis. Think good things on a daily basis. Smile on a daily basis. Know that even though sometimes life will give you a good sharp kick to the dangly bits you can handle it, once you stop squirming on the ground in pain.

So in this year of your lord 2016 resolve to be good, be nice, be caring, be happy, be sad, be honest, be smart, be a good friend, be a good person, wear a cup (just in case) and whatever you do make sure you open the door. Be the you that is focused on bettering you, not the you that is blaming others for your circumstances or the things that you do that make you worse.

So work hard, play hard and earn your inspiration.

Happy Poets Day