Richard Rayner, MD
On Your Mark
Alas, a new year! I don’t know of a single soul who was not ready to turn the calendar and leave 2020 behind. What was, in my mind anyway, to be a fun year of quips, puns, and related to the application of the 20/20 designation to lots of areas of life instead turned into an aversion to even the thought of it. There was almost a palpable, emotional push to get to New Year’s Day. Alas, 2021 hasn’t had exactly a smooth start, but the availability of a COVID-19 vaccine gives some hope that 2021 won’t be a repeat of 2020.
So where do we go from here? What lessons from 2020 should we carry forward? The potential benefit of the struggle and suffering is that it can motivate us toward something better and provide wisdom so that we do that something in a new and improved way. I’m not a huge fan of resolutions, mostly because I think they demand a huge leap over a deep chasm or require big jumps to get up a steep climb all at once. In reality, the best progress happens when we recognize that each day provides opportunities for small resolutions that over time prove significant.
New Moves
Often we finish the year feeling like through the holiday season we’ve been in a rough sea of activity that’s really pleasurable, full of fun times and special treats. January 1 seems like a good time to right the ship again. How many times have we said, starting January 2nd, “I’m going on a strict diet and will lose _______#’s.”? Usually, the plan is that will occur in a relatively short amount of time.
Or that exercise program we’ve been thinking about. It seems like a good time to start that. In normal times one can’t find a treadmill free at the gym in early January! By Valentine’s Day, you have your pick. January is marked by sore muscles and limping gaits. But we head over to the park, get up early to walk the neighborhood, reluctantly don the mask required at the gym and get it done. We overdo it but have a sense of accomplishment and feel good about getting back on the wagon.
The Draconian measures required to produce those changes may last a few weeks, perhaps even a couple months until we tire of the restrictions, or our winds of determination wane and our sails collapse as the waters of life calm a bit. And we’re back to things as usual. Might as well buy that one size larger pair of jeans, or another pair of sweats.
Old Wisdom
In one of Aesop’s more memorable fables, the tortoise and hare start a race against each other. The matchup is ridiculous, the hare dashing off easily outpacing the tortoise as expected. The tortoise plods along unable to affect his speed at all, never-the-less, his determination is real and does not wane. The hare, overconfident in his ability and sure of his success, decides he has the luxury of napping mid-race and does just that, only to later awaken and find that the tortoise has in fact passed him and crossed the finish line before him. The seemingly impossible has happened.
As with most classic childhood stories, the story is fun enough for children, but also contains lessons that are valuable and timeless. Daily I see the appropriate application of the principles of this fable to certain areas of life, in particular those that affect health and happiness.
Slow and Steady Wins the Race.
Which approach has characterized your life? Are you more tortoise or hare? If you’ve found yourself having a flash-in-the-pan approach to attempts to change your lifestyle or habits, ponder these principles as you consider desired changes in 2021.
- Know that lasting change is more likely to occur when small persistent steps forward are taken. The mountaintop view comes after stepping onto the trail, then putting one foot in front of the other until you reach the vista. And remember there are many vistas to be enjoyed in life. You’ve seen one, now press on with the same determination to seek the others.
- Determine to make changes with which you can live long term. Extremes are occasionally necessary, but for most people in most areas, the small consistent changes are what get us to the goal.
- Take “one day at a time.” This phrase is used by Alcoholics Anonymous to remind its members to not burden themselves with the concerns about persisting in sobriety for the rest of their lives. Just do the work of today. Jesus also advises, “Do not worry about tomorrow for tomorrow will worry about itself.” (Matt 6:24) Walkthrough today, maybe even half a day, and then take on the next segment or day and the challenges it brings.
- Don’t despise the day of small beginnings. TV shows or magazine articles that highlight someone who has achieved fame can sometimes give a sense that great things happen overnight. You just gotta get lucky. The much more common story is one of plodding determination eventually leading to significant accomplishments. While we often look to win the lottery of life, the winners are those who press on and scale the barriers as they come.
- Look for the ripple effect of change in one area affecting others. Consistent exercise tends to motivate one to eat a bit better often simply because it seems to make sense. The effort expended in one area leads to growth overall.
- Plan and schedule. Look ahead and plug into your schedule the things that are important but not urgent. Enter your week with the determination to stick to those plans and don’t let anything bump them from your schedule except a true emergency or help truly needed in a timely manner. When a friend calls to see if you want to meet for coffee but it’s your pre-planned work out time? Explore alternative opportunities to get together outside of that time. Better yet, invite her along!
- Lastly and very importantly, don’t despise the day of small beginnings. Start slowly, grow steadily, take setbacks in stride, beware of distractions that could get you off course.
