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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
In the meantime, here are my resolutions:<\/p>\n
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!!<\/p>\n
Body: Continue running and maintain body weight at 120#. Do yoga once a week. Exchange massages once a month.<\/p>\n
Spirit: Read The Purpose-Driven Life<\/em> by Rick Warren. Work on accepting Christians and their doctrines. Read The God Delusion<\/em>, which may shed some light on why we humans seem to need religion so much.<\/p>\n 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:<\/p>\n 1. Plan a wedding and get married.<\/p>\n 2. Find a new job.<\/p>\n Option A – preferably involving writing and\/or editing in the magazine world.<\/p>\n Option B – apply for a doctoral program.<\/p>\n Option C – continue working as an English Language Arts Coach.<\/p>\n 3. Buy or rent a condo\/apartment\/house in south Orange County.<\/p>\n 4. Find a good high school for Bella to attend.<\/p>\n 5. Rent my old house.<\/p>\n 6. Budget my finances.<\/p>\n 7. Reach 5,000 hits a day.<\/p>\n 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?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" 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 … Continue reading