New Year's Resolution (12/30/08)

New Year's Resolution
Maria Reylan M. Garcia


I remember back in grade school, when I still prefer pigtails sprouting from every corner of my head than a coveted cute guy's cell phone number. An abounding enthusiasm fueled me every time we go back to school after Christmas vacation. There were eternal chitchats of experiences from family reunions, whether the godparents had remembered to be more generous during the holidays or have just been excessively frugal and bitter. Some proudly expose their unfortunate fingers mourning for the lost of a brave Mr. Thumbman or a daring little Pinky. But what I was looking forward to the most was the sharing of our New Year's Resolution in front of the whole class. Everybody then, gets a chance to be a politician a couple of times in their lives. I spend almost a week of my vacation perfecting my resolution list filling up every space of a half lengthwise piece of intermediate paper, back to back. I was so geared up to start my year right. I was vibrant with childlike hope of changing for the better.


Everyone makes resolutions, although not all put it on writing, some just keep those to-do lists scribbled in their minds. Everyone makes resolutions to emancipate change. Change is universal, this mainly presents the reality that man seeks for improvement and doesn't satisfy himself with mediocrity. If there is a room to modify in order to gain more, if there is a space to remodel in order to profit more, then man would be tempted to aspire, to dream, to hope. Alexander Grahambell might have gotten tired in walking almost half a mile to order a pepperoni pizza and decided to include inventing a telephone to cater for delivery service a part of his New Year's resolution. The ancient cave men may have gotten annoyed with dragging bulky mammoth meat on their own and decided to include creating wheels as part of their New Year's resolution. The desire for change has been a catalyst for progress and it has given birth to almost everything visual and tangible in today's society.

These made me realize that a list of New Year's Resolution could be the start of the step-by-step building of what was long been the popular answer of beauty pageant titlists, unity and world peace. Too ideal? Too childlike? True, but all big and huge starts small. Next year, I promise to obey what mommy says especially with finishing completely my meals because not everyone can eat like I do. A ten-year old swears to accomplish this task the next year, what if he could? He'll learn to appreciate his economic luck and soon grow to be a one in a million politician who'll serve the people the way mommy taught him how to. Next year, I'll spend less on fabulous dresses and chic jeans even if their on sale and spend more for my school requirements to help dad save up for the much harder times. A college student promises to survive on two pairs of jeans, what if she can? She'll graduate and save her country from one count of unemployment and soon turn out as a professional, useful and productive. There are millions—rather billions of resolutions and if all of them were accomplished, a radical change, a global change might take place.


But, then again reality pinches and slaps me hard on the face every time I pop out with a deranged hope-hungry idea. It takes time, a long long time until everyone will be able to comply with their to-do lists and mark them as done. But, I hope this year several others would join my ten year old self's enthusiasm in accomplishing some New Year's resolutions. By then, the world can change bit by bit and would hopefully accumulate in the end until one amazing New Year when everybody has no more resolutions to make. But since it may be next to impossible, I'll just be at peace with the reality. Besides New Years are a lot more meaningful if we have some list of things to do for the next 365 days. Just like the fireworks painting the evening sky with multi-color masterpieces, our lives can be that beautiful and ideal. But just as short as the display would last are also our earthly lives, so we must really take some time to have our resolutions and deem for change even just step by step so we can reach the full blast and radiance that we were destined to become.

A few others have started fulfilling their resolutions before us. A cool salt-picking peace advocate named Gandhi, a groovy democrat called Mandela, a sweet and charming generous lady named Agnes a.k.a Teresa; it's time we follow their lead and roll for change even just step by step.

Next year, I hope to touch more lives through the simple medium of my pen. I have more resolutions from where it came from, but right now I'm starting to accomplish this one.

Make your New Year's Resolution.
Then start getting them done.
Happy 2009!