The prolific author and journalist, G.K. Chesterton, wrote the following about our tradition of declaring and sometimes even committing to resolutions with the approach of each new year: “The object of a New Year is not that we should have a new year. It is that we should have a new soul and a new nose; new feet, a new backbone, new ears, and new eyes. Unless a particular man made New Year resolutions, he would make no resolutions. Unless a man starts afresh about things, he will certainly do nothing effective.”
This year my resolve is to embark on a conscious quest to attempt, experience, and embrace people, places, things, cultures, and attitudes that have, heretofore, not been a part of my routine or comfort zone. In a word, to be more daring. For as the following verses penned by Edgar Guest attest, those who dare to do that which is new to them are those who are truly renewed.
The things that haven’t been done before,
Those are the things to try;
Columbus dreamed of an unknown shore
At the rim of the far-flung sky.
And his heart was bold and his faith was strong
As he ventured in dangers new,
And he paid no heed to the jeering throng
Or the fears of the doubting crew.
The many will follow the beaten track
With guideposts along the way.
They live and have lived for ages back
With a chart for every day.
Someone has told them it’s safe to go
On the road he has traveled o’er,
And all that they ever strive to know
Are the things that were known before.
A few strike out, without map or chart,
Where never a man has been,
From the beaten paths they draw apart
To see what no man has seen.
There are deeds they hunger alone to do;
Though battered and bruised and sore,
They blaze the path for the many, who
Do nothing not done before.
The things that haven’t been done before
Are the tasks worthwhile today;
Are you one of the flock that follows, or
Are you the one that shall lead the way?
Are you one of the timid souls that quail
At jeers of a doubting crew,
Or dare you, whether you win or fail,
Strike out for a goal that’s new?
“We spend January 1st walking through our lives, room by room, drawing up a list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. Maybe this year, to balance the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives…not looking for flaws, but for potential.” – Ellen Goodman
Here’s wishing you all an AWE-full New Year!
William J. “Bill” Bacqué