Tariq Nelson

Resolution (rĕz‘ə-lū‘shən)

1. The state or quality of being resolute; firm determination.
2. A resolving to do something.

Best wishes to everyone in the new year. Keep those resolutions. I have a few to keep myself that I have already begun to work on.

- Get in shape (I know it is cliche, but I mean it)

- Continue to reverse cultish damage I made for about 12 years of my life.

- Try not to be resentful about that dark period

- Continue to be active in my local neighborhood

Sounds like a little, but these are major things.

Over the past few months I have spoken to several people that are resentful and angry. Some are discouraged over their children. Some are sad that their lives are not going well. Many are discouraged about their terrible marriages. Some are discouraged about finances and the economy. And still some are all of the above. The terrible situation of their marriage is affecting their children, their health (stress) and their performance at work. It makes them resentful and angry.

However, I have learned that this only eats away at you and there is nothing (short of inventing a time machine) that we can do about the past. We have to live with it and move toward an optimistic future. That is my new approach. It will be difficult, but I am determined.

We must make a choice to not be discouraged and change our mindset. My advice is that when you get discouraged, try to focus somewhere else. Relentlessly determine that you are going to focus on the positive. You have no time to be sad or depressed. You’ve wasted enough time regretting the past. It is time to move forward.

However, I am the last person to say to ignore your problems and bury your head in the sand. Not at all. You can be realistic and optimistic at the same time. Stop worrying about things over which you have no control, but become determined to fix the mistakes of the past instead of wallowing in regret. Take a slow and steady approach and surely change will come after some time. You will even begin to look better and feel better.

So you have two choices: Continue to be resentful and angry or accept that things are what they are and resolve to do better in the future.

“Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve” - Benjamin Franklin

Filed under: Reflections