Your New Year’s Resolution

Honestly fam, saying that 2020 was difficult for all of us is an understatement.

I don't have a specific word for the amount of suffering 2020 has given each and every one of us.

What I can say though, is that 2020 is over. It's done. It's part of the past. It's history.

We've realized that life can drastically change with one unexpected turn, leaving the whole world to change their plans for an entire year.

Each of us planned on things which were not in our control, thus they were going to change inevitably.

But have we planned for ourselves? Have we planned on things that are solely in our power to attain?

If there's one thing 2020 has truly taught us, it's to rely on ourselves.

And now, as the world marches onto 2021, we've already seen the carnage coming back, especially for our United States readers.

We can't rely on other people to do what we want to do or have things happen a certain way. Clearly, it's not how the world works.

If there's something we don't like happening in the world, we must first and foremost change ourselves. That's the first step to attaining alchemy.

It seems as if everyone at the beginning of a new year is training to become an alchemist: they see something in themselves and the world at large that they don't like, or something they would like to improve on, and work on it themselves. We like to call this tradition our "New Year’s Resolution."

Full of determination and motivation, these people for the most part will start for a few days, maybe a few weeks at most. Maybe they'll take a jog every morning, go to the gym, make sure to get all their homework done on time. But afterwards, most will quit. Most people will think that life won't change no matter what they do. They will still remain as self-observed failures.

There are a few, however, who choose to embark on this self-improvement journey who simply never stop. It's as if they aren't specifically targeting one thing to improve on, even though they are, but it then manifests to other aspects of themselves, thus completely changing the individuals to the core.

Let me explain.

When my Grandpa came to visit a few days back, (yes, the same grandpa in one of the previous articles) we went on a hike together on New Year's eve. He asked me "So Khalid! Have you thought about your New Year‘s Resolution yet?" I replied "Yeah Gido, I have. You can tell that I haven't been my happiest self lately, right?" He simply nodded. I continued, "I've been wanting to find something I can improve on which will improve other things in my life. I'm choosing one thing to focus on, and that will be my spirituality. Because Gido, if I work on my spirituality, something I see as very important in my life, I will be happier, and when I'm happier, I will work harder in tennis, school, The Dreamer's Alchemy, coaching, mosque work, and stay disciplined from the moment I wake up to the moment I sleep. This one thing will drastically change who I am for the better." My grandpa nodded and smiled, "This is exactly what I was going to tell you, SubhanAllah ("Glory be to God" in Arabic). Focus on one big thing and everything in your life will fall into place."

To be honest with you, it wasn't that hard for me to choose a New Year’s Resolution. Spirituality is an important aspect of my character, and it was necessary for me to improve it if I want other aspects of my life to improve as well. So what's yours?

What's something about you that you cherish and know you need to work on? It can be something as simple as spirituality. It doesn't have to be something complicated. Often, when we tackle something simple, the complex things in life will sort themselves out.

Maybe you already chose your New Year’s Resolution, and maybe you haven't. If you have, by all means fam, I want you to keep going. Don't stop.

If you haven't, though, I would highly recommend you do so. You've seen how hectic life can get, and the only way to ensure that you've made it as least hectic as possible is by doing your part and relying on yourself. Frankly, there's no other way.

So choose your New Year Resolution wisely, but don't think too hard about it. It should be something simple that will drastically (I really do mean "drastically") change your life inside-out.

It's 2021.

How will you live it out?

Commit Alchemy