Korean tradition has the children bowing to their parents on New Year’s Day to show their respect. In return, the parents give the children a symbolic gift of money. Traditionally we also eat ttuk duk, which is a soup made with rice cake ‘dumplings,’ (small round medallions to symbolize wealth and prosperity in the upcoming year – another reference to money!) Our family has added the tradition of sharing our New Year’s resolutions, specifically one goal in each of three categories: mind, body, and spirit.
Bella never ever forgets this Korean custom and she presented me with a little New Year’s resolution poster yesterday – with lots of hearts mind you – and is anxiously awaiting the official bowing today. If I could figure out my scanner I would share her colorful poster with you.
In the meantime, here are my resolutions:
Mind: Complete the Spanish Rosetta Stone Level I. Continue participating in the book club I’ve joined. And dare I say for the third year in a row… finish my thesis!!
Body: Continue running and maintain body weight at 120#. Do yoga once a week. Exchange massages once a month.
Spirit: Read The Purpose-Driven Life by Rick Warren. Work on accepting Christians and their doctrines. Read The God Delusion, which may shed some light on why we humans seem to need religion so much.
This 2007 is going to be big one. It’s scary to think about. Here are some things I will be doing in the new year to-do list style:
1. Plan a wedding and get married.
2. Find a new job.
Option A – preferably involving writing and/or editing in the magazine world.
Option B – apply for a doctoral program.
Option C – continue working as an English Language Arts Coach.
3. Buy or rent a condo/apartment/house in south Orange County.
4. Find a good high school for Bella to attend.
5. Rent my old house.
6. Budget my finances.
7. Reach 5,000 hits a day.
Wow. Looks like a steep learning curve kind of a year. Yikes and double yikes. But I suppose people get married, set up new homes, and find new jobs all the time, right?
