Me and a better 2010

I promised myself that I would reflect on what I could do to make 2010 a better year for everyone in my life.

Over this last difficult year, I have found that the growth of my personal negativity is exponential when I am stressed: Everything and everyone has something wrong with it. So to battle this distressing trend, I am going to try a few techniques that I have learned but never truly believed (possibly because I didn’t actually try them!!).

•Put a smile on my face, even when I don’t feel like it (alcohol helps ;-} ). The conscious act of smiling can distract the mind from the foul thoughts that are smoldering.
•Start every day with the activities that will get me employed again, then balance my day with activities that will contribute to my family’s well being and my own mental and physical health.
•Try to remember that I can help my family to be closer by having a positive attitude.
•Focus on what I can do to make things easier for my loved ones, and not feel used every time they want me to do something.
•Force myself to be healthier with exercise and a more balanced diet.
•Respect the individuality of my loved ones, and accept that they can function quite well without my intervention or control.
Well, if I can manage all of that, I should quality for sainthood!! Realizing that I have spent 6+ decades building the me that I am (flaws and all), I should probably temper my expectations with the thought that “any improvement is better than none”.