Editorial: Seize the opportunity of a new year

Our New Year's Day editorial was originally published on Jan. 1, 2017.

One ritual of newspaper coverage is the annual story on the New Year's baby, what newborn from the area entered this world the closest to the break of the new day and year.

It's an enjoyable story all around. We enjoy reporting it. Readers generally enjoy reading it. Hospitals enjoy participating in it. And of course, the families involved are usually thrilled. The joy of the special attention may even erase some of the disappointment of ever-so-closely missing out on the tax advantages of a birth at the edge of the previous year.

One of the reasons we all enjoy this kind of thing: Who doesn't get excited about the birth of new life and all that awaits it?

When you think about it, that's what a new year is. It's like this giant baby of hope and promise for us, the chance not just to experience new things or to learn new things but also to achieve great things, to accomplish the things that didn't quite get done last year.

So here we are. Basking in the opportunity of another new year.

Carpe diem! Seize the day!

Let's rush into the New Year with enthusiasm and confidence. Let us head into the New Year believing we can make it a great year. And above all, let's head into it with a plan.

Great things, after all, seldom just happen. They're a product of vision, strategy and hard work.

Some people don't think much of New Year's resolutions on the grounds that more often than not, they're made to be broken.

There's truth to that. But the concept of resolutions is a good one. Used well, they can provide the focus needed to make goals happen.

So rather than give up on New Year's resolutions, we think it makes sense to figure out how to make the resolutions work.

How many people who quit smoking, after all, were successful the first time they tried? How many people who've lost weight were successful on the first diet?

If a goal is worth reaching, it's worth relentless effort. Perseverance is key. Little in life is accomplished without it.

So rather than abandon New Year's resolutions, make the one: "I will keep my New Year's resolutions."

And make the second: "I will not allow myself to become discouraged."

Let's start writing. And start keeping. And start making a great year. And maybe even start making a new us.

Commitment counts. Let's remind ourselves frequently of what we hope to achieve. And pursue it urgently.

For as the missionary Amy Carmichael observed, "We have all of eternity to celebrate the victories, but only a few short hours before sunset to win them."

Happy New Year, one and all.