For a long time, I tried making New Year’s resolutions. It was always some variation of the same goals at same point: I want to learn a new language; I want to lose weight; I want to do something creative; and I want to be more organized (the toughest hurdle for me).

Every year, I would begin by making a list of everything I wanted to accomplish. It always involved some big change that I could never maintain.

However, this year, I decided to do away with resolutions. Instead, I want to focus on building manageable habits that I can stick to. For example, I still want to lose weight, but at the end of the day I rather make healthier choices. If I lose weight, that’s great, but it feels even better when I don’t regret eating after the fact.

I definitely need to be more organized and productive, but buying all the planners and fancy pens won’t help me. What will is starting to make the conscience choice of putting away my books and keeping a clear desk space. Small steps are what I need.

At the end of the day, I new year just means a change of dates. If I want to make a real impact on my life, I can start whenever.

“The Year” by Ella Wheeler Wilcox is the most realistic view of what happens in a year. The years come and go, but the memories and events that happen within those time frames it was leaves the most impact.

I hope you enjoy my reading of the poem!