Willow Glen Resident

Letters & Opinions

New Year's resolutions: how about in the spring?

By Moryt Milo

The publication date on our newspaper says it's two days after the New Year, that fresh start, resolution time of year when everyone makes a pact with themselves and probably the devil to undo all the don'ts. For the majority of us, it's just a fleeting attempt at change. It's the rare few who stick to those resolutions for the next 12 months and beyond, and I have a suspicion why.

The problem is it's wintertime. The weather has us wanting to move less and eat more. Our minds and bodies are more into hibernation than recreation. We are thinking hot cocoa and teas, simmering soups and stews, not crispy salads and dining al fresco. It's January, after all. In California we finally pull out the scarves and gloves. Our minds have moved away from warm-weather exercise and the lighter meal routine.

Maybe that's one of the reasons the most popular New Year resolutions, losing weight and becoming more active, fall flat, especially when we are heading into the cold, wet and darker months of the year. Cuddling up on a sofa with a book, listening to relaxing music or enjoying a warm fire sounds much more appealing.

Logically, wintertime is when things are ending, not beginning. The calendar may say January, and on paper we are starting another year, but the cycle of change is really three months away, and that date is in the spring.

There are practitioners, many in the field of alternative medicine, who consider winter the wrong time of year to start new things. These practitioners argue that during the winter our bodies are happier if they rest, and I think they may be onto something.

It makes sense that spring should be the time of year for making a fresh start. It's when everything else begins blooming and growing again. And who can deny the burst of energy that permeates our bones and maybe even our souls when the weather warms up and the sun beats on our faces. It's certainly a much more motivating time, especially since we are peeling off layers of clothes and probably would like to peel off a few pounds with it.

What we need to do is forget the whole New Year's resolution way of thinking and wait until spring to make those pacts with ourselves, if we must.

So what if it's three months later? The timing is much more auspicious for creating and following through on our list of resolutions as it warms up, and the days grow longer.

No matter what the season, I am not advocating that we should ignore our health or intentionally avoid any self-improvements that are beneficial during the first half of the new year. I just don't think we have to be so gung-ho about it. That is often a recipe for failure. Putting a game plan in place that allows us to transition into our goals makes more sense, and there is something to be said for "timing is everything."

After a hectic holiday season, I am convinced that the whole New Year's resolution thing is definitely overrated, and it's one more item I have gladly crossed off my to-do list. Instead, I'll spend the winter months trying to find more balance and strength so come spring I'll have the energy needed for all those resolutions I put into hibernation during January.

Moryt Milo is the editor for the Willow Glen Resident. She can be reached at 408.200.1051 or via email at mmilo@
community-newspapers.com.

Look for us on Fridays

Beginning the week of Jan. 15, Silicon Valley Community Newspapers will begin a new production schedule that will result in a change of delivery date for the Willow Glen Resident. The paper will be delivered on Fridays, beginning Jan. 19.

Although the original impetus for the change was the need to accommodate a new printing schedule, we were excited when we realized that the change in our weekly news cycle will make it possible for us to make our news coverage more timely.

In the past, for instance, we had to run council news more than a week after the meeting, because the Willow Glen Resident was delivered the morning of the regular council meetings. With our old schedule, we finished our reporting and editing cycle one week and were well into the next week's cycle when our readers were opening up their papers on Tuesday morning.

We are excited that we will be able to serve you even better with our new schedule. But rest assured, that's all that will change. You can still look to us for the same lively coverage of news for and about the people of Willow Glen that you've come to expect.

--Dale Bryant, executive editor

Moryt Milo is the editor of the Willow Glen Resident. She can be reached at 408.200.1051 or via email at mmilo@community-newspapers.com.