Date: 22nd August 2021 Shift: Subject Q. No: 98

The New Year is a time for resolutions. Mentally, at least, most of us could compile formidable lists of dos and don’ts. The same old favorites recur year in and year out with monotonous regularity. Past experiences have taught us that certain accomplishments are beyond attainment. If we remain deep-rooted liars, it is only because we have so often experienced the frustration that results from failure. Most of us fail in our efforts at self-attainment because our schemes are too ambitious and we never have time to carry them out. We make the fundamental error of announcing our resolution to everybody so that we look even more foolish when we slip back into bad old days. Aware of these pitfalls, this year I attempted to keep my resolutions to myself. I limited myself to two modest ambitions: to do physical exercise every morning and to read more every morning. I carry out these two tasks assiduously.

The self-discipline required to drag myself out of bed eleven minutes earlier than usual was considerable. Nevertheless, I managed to creep down into the living room for two days before anyone found me out. After jumping about on the carpet and twisting the human frame into uncomfortable positions, I sat down at the breakfast table in an exhausted condition. It was this that betrayed me. The next morning the whole family trooped in to watch the performance. That was really unsetting, but I fended off the taunts and jibes of my family good-humoredly and soon everybody got used to the idea. However, my enthusiasm waned, and the time I spent at exercises gradually diminished. I argued to myself that if I spent less time exhausting myself at exercises in the morning it would keep my mind fresh for studying. Resisting to delete the hypnotizing effect of television, I sat in my room for a few evenings with my eyes glued to a book. One night, however, feeling cold and lonely, I went downstairs and sat in front of the television pretending to read. That proved to be my undoing, for I soon got back to the old habit of dozing off in front of the screen. I still haven’t given up my resolution to do more reading.