Lessons learned along life's path

The holidays are over, and life is back to normal. For those of you who made New Year's resolutions, maybe you've even already broken some of them. I'm not saying this to criticize. At the beginning of January in decades past, making a resolution then breaking it a short time later often caused me some discouragement.

Who wants to feel like a failure at the start of a new year? Therefore, a couple of holidays ago I made a resolution to not make any more resolutions. Instead anytime I sense that I need to change something in my life, I try to work on it right away.

This philosophy is coming straight from the keyboard of a former procrastinator. After all, one of the most significant lessons I've learned along life's path is that important tasks that we put off rarely get done. It's best to tackle an issue as soon as possible to make sure that it doesn't get lost in the whirlwind of everyday living.

This lesson is more significant than some others that are part of my life repertoire. For example, I've also come to believe that a person should never buy a single pair of socks or gloves. The law of probability seems to ensure that when socks are placed in the washer frequently they will disappear into what I refer to as Sock Heaven. Solo socks take this mysterious journey into the unknown suds never to be seen again.

It is for this very reason that socks are sold in sets that way when one sock goes to Sock Heaven the other can still be worn. This theory holds true when purchasing gloves, too, although I doubt there is a heaven for missing mittens. Instead my lost gloves are probably strewn throughout northwestern Ohio, left in restaurant booths or on roadways.

Missing gloves aren't too high on the life lesson priority list, but keeping in touch with family and friends is crucial. In our hectic-paced world, social isolation becomes a daily challenge. Taking time to share more than an occasional email, but instead driving hours to meet an old friend to reminisce over coffee can be exhilarating.

When we are with folks who truly love us and have known us a long time, we somehow remember who we really are. The pieces of our life fit better, and we can bask in the kind of camaraderie that can only come from long-term relationships.

Speaking of relationships, when I asked my husband what was the most valuable life lesson he had learned, Larry said for him it was the importance of relationships. "Everything that we accomplish in life in some way is connected to relationships. Our successes and failures come from our relationships, whether we have a good relationship or a bad," was his advice. "It's how we treat people, and how we make people feel about themselves, and whether or not we keep our word that creates our reputation."

For me, keeping one's word is also a paramount lesson for any person who desires to be a man or woman of integrity. About a year ago, I listened intently as an elderly farmer told my husband and me that a handshake would be all that he would need to complete a business contract. I marveled that this senior still trusted in the paperless covenant created by two agreeing adults in a world where cheating and lying is an everyday occurrence. There is even a Biblical scripture that can be paraphrased, "a man should keep his oath even when it hurts."

Yet there is also the lesson that involves knowing when to "let go." It's a kind of internal follow your heart and instincts manual that allows a person to know when it's time to cut your losses and venture out on a new path. It can be something as significant as a job change, going back to school, or even having the courage to end a destructive relationship. Embracing change willingly is a difficult life lesson, because by nature most human beings are creatures of habit who hang onto familiar circumstances.

For the New Year, I didn't make any resolutions, but I did celebrate another year of new beginnings and counted my many blessings. Despite the bleak economic forecast for 2009, I found joy in spending time with family and friends. You see, history tells us that bear markets come and go, but the relationships we have with those we love and those who genuinely love us endure through it all.

Christina Ryan Claypool is a freelance journalist and inspirational speaker. Contact her at Christina@christinaryanclaypool.com.