Read, Eat Fruit and Smile!

Happy New Year!

My wish is for a happy and healthy 2011 for all of my friends and family.

Resolutions! Are you a resolution person? Have you spent the day making lists and promising yourself that this will be the year that …. (fill in the blank)? Although it’s good to have goals (without them we probably wouldn’t even get out of bed in the morning), history has proven that we usually don’t keep our New Year resolutions.  We set the bar too high and set ourselves up for failure.

I stopped making resolutions years ago but I do take inventory every year. I look at what I’ve accomplished or what I’ve learned and how I’ve challenged myself.  Then I consider what I can do to improve myself in the upcoming year.  

My husband was listening to talk radio the other day and the host proposed the following question: “What will you try to improve this year, your mind, your body or your spirit?” Of course, with my holistic way of thinking, I immediately started to ponder on how I could improve all three.

I’ve always been an avid reader but in recent years my computer time has replaced a lot of my reading time.  To improve my mind I’m going to try to read a book a week. This will probably cut down on my computer time but might also keep my brain from turning to mush.

As for my body, I’ll continue to try to improve on my diet.  I usually eat healthfully and have no trouble incorporating vegetables in most of my meals.  However, I find that I’m often lacking in fruit servings. So I’ll start by trying to eat at least one piece of fruit a day. I know that this probably sounds strange since most people have more trouble with vegetables than with fruits.

What can I do to improve my spirit? This required a little more thought.  There were a lot of areas where I could improve. However, I wanted something powerful enough to make a difference but not so overwhelming that I set myself up for defeat. Then it hit me! I could smile more! I remembered that when I was in Israel, Fr. David frequently looked at me and said “smile.” I wasn’t unhappy I just tend to have a serious look.  I have a friend/co-worker who is always saying “watch out for her she has the look today.” I know exactly what look she means too.  I’ve seen it in photographs. Sometimes when I’m lost in thought I can look downright mean. Smiling more will definitely improve that image as well as my spirit!

Hopefully I’ll improve myself in mind, body and spirit this year but not with resolutions that will be cast aside in a month.  I’ll make slight improvements daily by just remembering my new mantra, “Read , Eat Fruit and Smile”!