Why I Like New Year's Day

I do.  I like New Year's Day.  And not just because we have turned it into a slovenly day to stay home, read, watch TV, and eat endless plates of really crappy frozen snacks like Pizza Rolls and taquitos.

I like it because it gives me a little breathing room to think about beginning again.  Beginning better habits.  Starting new pursuits.  Giving myself direction, focus, and priorities.

I can't say that I always make progress.  I know that I don't meet half of my ambitions.  But none of that matters.  It's the fact that we can begin again.  We can begin again any time and any day.  But New Year's Day gives us a reason to give it another try.

I'm going to put a few things on the forefront of my time and goals in 2012.  Some of these are things I've wanted to do for a long time.  Some are things I have tried and failed at before.  But so what.  Here we go again:

• Learn to play guitar (I got some software for Christmas to help me out this time!)
• Learn some Spanish (not sure how, although I have had a program for this for a while, I'll try it, and some CD's)
• Read more outside of my familiar areas of theology and spirituality (I got a Kindle fire for Christmas!)
• Get back to regular exercise (I haven't since I started working in Austin...)
• Being more intentionally open to the people in the room with me, whatever room that is on whatever day
• Blogging more (Hey, this is a start!)

Here's to the silly foolish belief that we can actually become new again, January 1, or any other day, and thanks for the One who makes all things new, even us, even now.