I am hard pressed to find anyone over age forty that makes New Year’s Resolutions. Or if we do, we mutter them quietly to ourselves in the shower on January first. I confirmed this suspicion recently at a NYE party with folks over 40 by asking if they did resolutions and getting repeated vague grumblings with NO ONE sharing any lifestyle changes for the New Year (myself included). After 30 years of declarations, we’re all clearly over it. But why?
Here’s my theory:
Because, just as grown ups can buy themselves what they want for X-mas, they also can lead the lives they want and have actualized — day in and day out without craving and regret. In other words, resolutions are no longer needed. Not because we’re perfect or even jaded, but because if we want to change our lives, January 1 is pretty irrelevant considering we probably changed 4 things about ourselves this year already.
Sweeping generalizations and Christmas wishes, like asking someone for new bath towels, is charming and all, but . . . whatever. We’ll get our own towels and we’ll start walking the dog every day when school starts again, but not if it’s under 20 degrees or raining, because, I mean, seriously. This isn’t an all or nothing game we’re playing here. It’s life and it’s going fine.
If it wasn’t, we’d have changed it already, because we’re all grown up now.