new-years-resolutionOne of the nice things about getting older is the fact that I no longer feel the pressure to reinvent myself. To celebrate reaching this stage of life, I’d like to share three resolutions I will NOT make for 2016:

1. I will NOT resolve to lose 10 pounds. I am at least four decades past the point of playing beach volleyball or wearing a bikini. Skinny is not my goal. However, good health does matter, so I am resolving to eliminate sugar and processed food from my diet. If I focus on keeping my joints, heart, and brain healthy, I don’t think weight will be an issue.

2.  I will NOT resolve to get organized. I have accepted the fact that my desk will always be messy, my spices will never be alphabetized, and there will always be a stack of unsorted mail on my kitchen counter.

Last summer, after my husband had repeatedly said, “Your pantry is a mess!” and I had repeatedly replied, “I know. I need to get it organized,“ I finally got exasperated and said, “Darling, you are much more skilled in this type of work than I am, so why don’t you get it the way you like it, and then I will try to keep it neat.”

Guess what? He did it, and it worked great for both of us. Following me around, nudging drawers closed and rearranging dishes in the dishwasher to optimize space seems to give him a sense of purpose and fulfillment. Why would I want to take that away from him?

3. And finally, I will NOT spend time or energy getting prepared for the next catastrophe.  I am aware that  2016 will bring more natural disasters, more mass murders, and more tragedies than we can possibly imagine today, but I refuse to become cynical or to  live in fear. I choose to believe that there is more good in the world than evil, and that even when life is unbearably hard, it is still precious and worth living.

As with most people who are well past the mid-point in their lives, I have suffered enough failures, losses and grief to begin this new year knowing that regardless of what happens, I will somehow find the strength, faith and courage to go on, and that even in our darkest hours it will still be possible to experience love, joy and forgiveness.

Wishing you all the best in 2016!