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THOUGHTS & MUSINGS BY CHARLOTTE WOMEN
T Today’s Charlotte Woman | January 2013 50
Been There, Done That No Resolutions Here By Joanne Morse
he countdown is done, and just like that the new year has begun. With it comes the onset of what I consider to be one of the most mystifying concepts of all time: The New Year’s resolution. Many have played the game, but how many actually make it to the finish line? Somehow, the resolution has developed into a rite of passage a person has to go through in order to pay homage to the dawn of the new year. Well, I say, “Bah Humbug” to all that stress — because when all is said and done, that’s what the whole resolution thing has brought me in the past. A sense of stress. Sure, it’s the new year, with its promise of new opportunities and a chance to start over ... to get things right, so to speak. I fully support the concept and wish luck to those embarking on yet another resolution-making spree. As for me, ho hum … been there, done that. But I’ll take a moment to play nice. If a resolution was in the cards for me this year, maybe this would be the year I resolve to make my bed every day. But then I think: Why start now? It has served me well unmade for 40 years. It’s way more inviting when it’s not made, anyhow. Besides, who am I trying to impress? Or, maybe I could actually attempt the feat of taking the clean clothes out of my laundry basket and putting them away on a consistent basis, rather than pulling them out on a needto-wear basis. Nah! The end result is the same — eventually my clothes move from the basket to another location, and then the process starts all over again.
Oh, wait a minute! I have a good one. How about I make that oh-so-familiar New Year’s resolution to get skinnier ... to get my body where it actually matches up with the mental picture in my head? But then it hits me that the feat would require defying the law of gravity — woman’s enemy No. 1. And you know, I’ve heard duct tape is quite the versatile, all-purpose, fixanything-in-a-pinch type tool. Hmmm — I wonder! This year, I have decided to sit the whole resolution thing out. I hear the arguments everywhere. “But it’s tradition …” or, “Don’t you want to reach for a goal?” Of course I do, but I want to do it with a mantra, not a resolution. My mantra for the new year is,“Strong is the New Skinny.” And while I can’t take credit for the creation of that powerful statement, I plan to put it to good use, nevertheless. This year, I want to redefine what really matters to me. There was a time when skinny was my top priority every new year. I’m over it! Now, my focus is to be strong … strong in all the ways that encompass who I am and who I continually strive to be: a strong woman, wife, and mother, and one with a strong body, mind, and soul. [TCW]
Joanne Morse is a metabolic-effect certified personal trainer, and self-described “bare-footin’, bare-food lovin’, back-to-basics lover of fitness and nutrition.” Read her blogs at barefootbarefood.com.