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Resolutions
As a young person, every year I would make a resolution to keep a diary. I, at one time, probably had the largest collection of unfinished diaries in existence. They were very uninspiring and I am sure that the world is better off not having them in existence. I did record the first time I was kissed, the longings of a young girl, and the uneventful life of a girl, but those feelings and events are common. I am in awe of people who write journals, Oprah for instance, who has kept a journal for about 25 years or so. Now her journals are probably interesting. Mine were not journals and they were not interesting. By about the middle of February, I grew bored of recording that I had gone to school, done the dishes, and had done other routine tasks. And I would neglect and then finally stop keeping a diary that year. The following year I would again vow to keep a diary and again fail. I was evidently a slow learner and didn’t realize for many years that keeping a diary was beyond me.
My mother kept a diary or a day book or a journal for many years. Toward the end she couldn’t think of what to say so she would ask us what to put in. She faithfully recorded the weather each day. Of course to a farm wife, this was important information. My sisters and I often wonder what Mother would have been if she had an education and the opportunities available today. She was very gifted.
I have written a note to my daughter every day for many years. In fact since she started college. It started out as postcards but with the advent of email, it has become that. I write to my husband’s family each day and to some in my family each day. I also write a family letter each week. I started the family letter first to my five sisters, then I added my husband’s sisters and brother. Some of the nephews on his side wanted to be in on these letters. I added elderly aunts and cousins and so it grew. These missives are not particularly interesting or informative and are certainly not deathless prose. I often say it is so that Kay will remember who her mother is. She will, after all, be the one who chooses the Home I will be in eventually. I don’t keep a copy of these letters so they are just gone when they leave my computer.
I have finally learned my lesson - I do not make resolutions. We all know that we do what we want to do. If we want to do it, whatever it is, badly enough, we will do it. Having said that, I do have a mental list of things I want to get done in 2007:
. lose 40 pounds
. be a better wife and mother
. finish some needlework for Eunice
. find my watch
. be a better housekeeper
. refinish the chair in the garage
. grow 4 inches
No one ever said that resolutions, written down or not, have to be reasonable, specific or practical.
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