Hello Gauchos!

Welcome to 2023! This edition marks the first Journalism publication of the year and I am sure you are all just dying to hear me ramble on for 20 minutes about my New Year’s resolutions and whatnot. 

Yeah, not going to happen. 

Given the new year full of near endless possibilities and potential, it seemed prudent to discuss the affairs of this coming year as they slowly but surely come into focus.

It must be noted that from 2022, we bring with us a great deal of distress and despair. The war between Russia and Ukraine rages on. Infighting in Iran continues as womens’ rights are becoming more and more prominent. The rejection of science and logical thinking becomes more and more of an issue, especially with the presence of social media and other online sources. And on top of all of that, we have before us a planet that is getting too hot, too crowded, and too polluted, all in one fell swoop.

Despite these great troubles we collectively face in the world, we must not remain cowering in the shadows for the entirety of the year. We must stand on our own two feet, emerge from the darkness and enter the warm, colorful presence of the light.

To quote The Last of Us, critically acclaimed video game turned recently released television show, “When you’re lost in the darkness, look for the light.”

If anything, we should examine these world problems, as well as problems we face in our own lives and devise new solutions and strategies for solving them in an effective and healthy manner. We must make good, well-thought out decisions this year to facilitate this process of betterment.

Now, in an attempt to move this process along, many people will formulate a list of New Year’s resolutions. This list will contain someone’s goals for the year and what they hope to accomplish or achieve.

Oftentimes these do not pan out whatsoever. While some determined individuals may be able to knock out a few items on their resolutions list, many will fail to even begin to work on the first item listed.

Recognizing that there is a need for change in an aspect of your life is an important part of the problem solving process, don’t get me wrong. But, it’s somehow worse when someone states that there is a problem, yet makes no efforts to resolve it.

Thus, it is my recommendation that people wishing to better themselves and the world around them not set a massive “to-do” list of things they want to accomplish or change that year. Realistically speaking, fixing all of the world’s problems in one year is an utterly impossible task.

On top of that, one must consider the complexity and spirit (or sometimes lack thereof) of the human psyche. The mind resists change to a certain extent; one cannot go immediately from one lifestyle to the next at the snap of a finger. There must be a continued, deliberate effort at making changes and adapting new lifestyles in order to even begin making progress towards the overall goal.

Instead, I have a different suggestion; instead of long lists and checklists and agendas and timelines, achieve change through “themes” instead. 

Instead of saying “I should read more books more often”, say “2023 shall be the year of knowledge.” Instead of saying “I should actually go to bed at a decent hour and not 3 o’clock in the morning”, say “2023 shall be the year of rejuvenation.” Instead of saying “I should have more friends”, say “2023 shall be the year of friendship.” And so on and so forth. Every goal or task you can think of can be applied to a “theme” of some shape or form.

By applying a broad, open-ended “theme” to your year, it allows for a much greater level of flexibility for change to occur; one that is tuned to the brain’s complex nature, rather than bogging it down with a list of tasks that will likely never be accomplished in due time.

The open-ended nature of these “themes” also alleviates a great deal of stress on the person who creates them. Having a massive to-do list piled high with tasks is never fun, and while there is often enough steam from the previous year to get things started, the quantity of items on a list of resolutions can be intimidating, daunting, and rather discouraging at times. With having a theme, all you have is one central idea or concept; a concept that can be achieved in numerous different ways. And by the end of the year, if you have, by some means, achieved or “completed” that concept of life, then congratulations! You just successfully achieved a “New Year’s resolution”. But for real this time.

CGP Grey, a small but prominent infographical YouTube channel, uploaded an excellent video covering this exact same topic. If you’re interested, I highly recommend checking it out.

There is still a great deal of time for change. It is, after all, only January. 11 more months shall follow the one at present, leaving plenty of time to change, adapt, grow and flourish into something remarkably beautiful.

I encourage all who read this to make this the best year they can. Start small and work your way up to the big things. When times are tough, look for the light and get help where it is necessary.

Remember what I have been instilling into you all the entire school year: We’re all in this together. And together, we can become the change we want to see. For real. Live and in stereo.

If you ever have any questions, comments or concerns about a particular article, or you have a suggestion for one, please don’t hesitate to leave us a comment, write us a letter or send us an email.

Seize the Day,

Owen Davis

Editor-in-Chief, 2022-2023