Sunday 1 January 2012

Resolutions? I Think Not!

It's quite a common occurrence for people to make resolutions for the New Year at the end of the last. It's a tradition that has been carried out annually for goodness knows how long. I find the action of making a resolution rather quaint and, ultimately, pointless.
   For those of you who do not already know, a new year's resolution is when one makes a sort of promise to either themselves or others in which one pledges to do something or other, for example stick to a diet or give a certain amount of money to charity each month. At its most basic, it is a person saying that they'll do (or not do) something and really trying to stick to it.
   I think this is a pointless excercise.
   Assume it is New Year, which it is anyway, but ignore that. You've decided to take up Spanish. This is a great idea, and I applaud you for choosing to do so, because Spanish is a very useful language to learn, holding a top ten spot on the 'list of languages spoken by the most people'. (Can you tell that I just made that up off the top of my head?) So while I shake your hand and tell you how it's a great thing you're doing, I still have a question for you: Why did you wait?
   I can understand why people wait until New Year. I really do. Some folks feel compelled to do something for the New Year. I just don't understand why they don't start earlier. I mean, if something's worth doing, then why hold off? Of course, over the New Year there's kind of an incentive to make this year better than the last, but surely the same principle can be applied to practically any timeframe. Make today better than yesterday, this week better than last. Years seem to have some special hold over us, don't they? Even so, I don't think a New Year's resolution should be kept in a box until New Year. Let one loose in June or something. It is for this very reason that I myself don't really make New Year's resolutions. If something's worth doing, then why wait?
   As I leave you with this, I'd just like to say that you probably should make a resolution of some kind. Take up Karate, go to the gym more often, stop stealing biscuits from the tin. Write a novel. That's what I aim to try and do. I should have started earlier, but let's face it, I like to procrastinate. It's an art.
   Good luck in whatever you do with yourselves in 2012. Make it worthwhile.
   Regards, Professor Pisces

1 comment:

Matt said...

Spanish is third most spoken i think.
The order goes Mandarin, Hindi, Spanish and then English.