New Year's Resolutions And The Cranky Kid: Who Appointed You The Chief Administrator Of The Universe?

As is customary at this time of year at the Dougloid Towers we trot out the image of the Cranky Kid, who by now should be an angry adolescent. He represents the true spirit of this blog, and I thank him for it wherever he may be. Gosh, he'd be a cute little feller if he'd quit his damned squawking.

I can't imagine where the time has gone, as this blog has done yeoman service as a place for me to express myself and sometimes as a spittoon for bad ideas. Either way it scratches some sort of itch.

Some things have changed. One day last spring I was heading out of the courthouse and I said to myself, "Self. Hey you. Now looky here. You've just spent two hours of your life that you will never get back, arguing with people you detest and who are, in fact, detestable. Give it up, fer Chrissakes."

Since then I've decided I'll do the best I can within the limits of the law, but I'm nobody's bitch. Life, as they say, is far too short for all that. I'm wise to it.

My second new years' resolution was to prevent-to nip in the bud, as they say, any attempt to do a drama dump on me. I'm not a fire hydrant any more. Those days are over.

My third resolution is to take care of my own messes and problems, to keep my business to myself, and to be punctilious in pointing out to folks that they too, need to take care of their problems without my involvement or assistance. That means, my water carrying days are over.

My fourth resolution is to keep in mind that justice, mercy, and forgiveness are all intertwined. I'm not one for scripture but one thing I do like in the Book of Mormon is a colloquy between a judge and his son on the nature of these things. They cannot exist without the other. For wrongs done, there must be punishment. When there is punishment there must be repentance. Out of repentance can come mercy and forgiveness, but none of these things is possible without justice. It also suggests that the truly penitent are entitled to our forgiveness.

It comes right down to taking responsibility for the things we've done, making our peace, and then claiming our forgiveness.

All of us. Without exception.