Pat Taub
Typically, we make New Year’s resolutions focused on improving our lives materially with pledges to diet, exercise, and travel to new destinations. But what if this year, your primary focus was on your internal self rather than your external self?
For this year’s resolutions, try to put less emphasis on personal improvement and more on soulful practices that make the world kinder
In other words, resolutions to expand your soul where you grow in compassion.
In a world increasingly defined by wars, hate-filled politics and an indifference to the poor and marginalized, we need compassion more than ever. You become a beacon of light when you offer compassion.
When you do something for another, as simple as reaching out to a friend who’s lonely, you bring light to that person, and you feel filled with light by extension.
Resolving to have a healthy body in 2024 is important, but it doesn’t address the darkness in the world. So, please consider enlarging your resolutions to include compassionate responses to others and towards contributing to peace at home and abroad.
Here are a few examples of soulful resolutions:
Practice random acts of kindness:
Give your place in the check-out line to a mother with fidgety kids; thank your mail carrier for her steadfastness in bad weather; email a friend, reminding her or him of how much you value their friendship.
Join a local organization that reflects your values:
Stand for a ceasefire in Gaza; support local efforts to find shelters for the unhoused; join a group addressing global warming.
Mainers who staged a peaceful Xmas day vigil for a ceasefire in Gaza in front of Senator King’s home
Volunteer:
Pick an organization that moves you, like working with victims of domestic violence, or lend a hand to a clothes closet that distributes free clothing to those In need.
Practice Compassionate Communication:
This modality can help you connect with those with whom you differ. The focus is on listening closely to the other without being judgmental. It’s communicating with the heart where you listen more than you speak in order to deepen your understanding of the other.
A focus on empathy can prevent heated conversations from escalating where both sides go away angry, feeling misunderstood. When you feel yourself getting triggered by something the other says, pause, take a deep breath, and try to put yourself in their shoes and imagine what they’re feeling.
Become informed:
Read up on the history of both Israel and Palestine for a perspective on the current conflict. Likewise, read about the conditions in Latin American countries that fuel immigration to the US border.
Do your inner work:
In order to put your best self forward as a compassionate practitioner, adopt meditation, which can calm you, quieting your churning feelings.
Keep a gratitude journal:
A gratitude journal offers perspective. Most of us live in luxury compared to our counterparts in war-troubled countries or those living in poverty. By appreciating what we have this practice keeps us from being too self-centered. Research finds that a daily gratitude practice creates positive feelings.
Join a support group of like-minded individuals who share your concerns for a better world:
I’ve benefited enormously from meeting with like-minded women in my community who share my despair over the genocide in Gaza. We comfort one another while discussing ways to make a difference.
You can augment your soulful resolutions with inspirational readings like The Book of Joy, Hope in the Dark, and daily email reminders like “A Network for Grateful Living.”
Hold onto the words of Leonard Cohen, who reminds us how our individual light can make a difference:
Ring the bells that still can ring
Forget your perfect offering
There is a crack, a crack in everything
That’s how the light gets in.
