Dear Jewish Fairy Godmother:

Okay the parties and bowl games are over. Vacation time is past and

gone, and I finally got up the gumption to get on the scale, balance

my checkbook, and take an evening to look back at the wreckage I’ve

created of all of last year’s resolutions. Okay maybe not all. I did make

progress at work and got a small promotion, though no raise given the

economy. My relationship is intact, though a little stale, which is how a

lot of my life feels: not too bad, not exciting, but familiar and

comfortable. I’d like some motivation and inspiration for the new year,

hell for the new decade that’s gonna pack a bigger punch than the

usual lose weight, exercise more, and plan a vacation for me and my

sweetie. Any good ideas?

Ready for Takeoff

 

Dear Ready:

The best idea I’ve encountered recently is to take life in month-size

bites. This is a plan you can grab hold of now and plan, but you should

also cut yourself a little slack and allow for spontaneity, not necessarily

within a given month but between them. Here’s how it works: You

identify things that you’re willing to do every day for a month that will

influence your life. These can be things you’ll commit to doing a few

minutes a day or something more profound, but things you’ll truly

commit to.

 

Sit down with a pen and paper. Identify what you’d like to have

different in your life. Then take some time to think about associated

behaviors that might influence that change. Here’s a few quickies to

get the gist of it: Lose weight – the usuals like eat less and exercise

more. De-stress – meditate and breathe deeply. Take a few minutes

and make your list now, before you keep reading. I promise some

ideas to round out yours, but what you come up with will help give you

perspective and scale relative to ideas from me and other readers.

(Really, try this first.)

 

Okay. Here’s some you might not have considered that will help your

Imagination:

 

Walk daily: Start with something short, say10 minutes. But

every day of the month, add a little more – perhaps one more

minutes or ten more steps, but add to the time you spend

Outdoors.

 

Eat something different: You can decide to count calories, or

follow a diet, or simply eat smaller portions as your primary

organizing principle for food. But no matter what, try new foods

each day and expand your taste buds and palette.

 

Buy less: Where less is nothing you can avoid spending money

on right then. Obviously the mortgage, monthly bills, and food

are on the list. But every time you find yourself reaching for a

discretionary purchase, say you’ll wait till next month. If you still

remember, you’ll find it later.

 

Read daily: Not just the newspaper or a magazine, but a real

holdable printed book (or, eeek, a Kindle). You can go for fiction

or non-, or even poetry (which truly does sound better aloud).

But allow your world to expand with new imagery.

 

Do very little: It can mean classic eyes closed sit ting quietly

meditation, or it can mean staring at a piece of art or listening to

music, but do it without trying to multi-task. Just be still.

 

Journal: Buy yourself a blank book, and commit some time each

day to talk to yourself. It can be morning or evening, but get

used to allowing your own thoughts to have some space to flex

and speak. You’ll be surprised what you have to teach yourself.

 

Choose a book by a spiritual teacher you respect and read a little

each day: It can be Jewish (Lawrence Kushner or Shefa Gold are

great) or one of the easy to find 365 day inspirational books you

can find in January. Open your heart and soul.

 

Change your wardrobe: Buy a new silk scarf or a new hat,

something to make you feel new and perky. Change your look

and how other people see you. Decide what you want your new

persona to be and how you want to inhabit it.

 

Do tzedakah: That can be formally doing volunteer work, helping

your neighbors, or even giving to panhandlers. But do something

that takes you out of your life and into the lives of others.

 

Practice gratitude: Appreciate something about your life in a

formal and spoken way. Say thanks in your heart and share your

insight and appreciation with someone you love.

 

If you do any or all of these, or any or all of your own, or a month,

you’ll find some of them become habits. By next year this time you’ll

be happier and more optimistic.