New Year, New Beginnings, New Resolutions
For many of us, each new year starts with hope and resolutions for positive change. For some it may mean a promise to read more, get more exercise, adopt new eating habits, or lose weight. For others, it may be an opportunity to acknowledge our own spiritual growth over the past year and welcome the new person we are becoming, as we strive to discard old habits and adopt new ways of relating to ourselves and others.
Several of the articles in this month’s issue inspired me to think about how the reality of living is one of impermanence and continuous change. For our cover model, loss brought about a whole new determination for her to adapt and change. In health and medicine, change brings about new beginnings and possibilities for better outcomes, new cures, new systems and discoveries, and hope for what once may have been a deadly prognosis.
The natural course of life subjects us all to adapt to loss, grief, rejection, and disappointment. While the reality of life’s unpredictable and uncertain nature can be anxiety provoking, it can also be liberating. For me, it is liberating to know that in my determination to do my best, I am, in some ways, a different person than I was yesterday. I may write better, behave better in an adverse situation, or view someone I had preconceived ideas about differently.
So, this year, rather than hoping for everything to remain the same, I look forward to embracing life’s impermanence to open myself to life’s endless life-changing possibilities.
