Resolution Kept

It's that time of year again, when people look back and decide how to make the New Year better than the last. They will decide they are going to lose weight, read highbrow books, learn a new language, get a better job, or stop smoking. And perhaps they will truly mean it, but often they just think they mean it, and the resolution goes unresolved.
My resolution for 2011 has been kept, but it is one of those ongoing resolutions that must remain a resolution for this year as well. I decided to "correct" my back. I injured it several, perhaps five, years ago. I went to a chiropractor at first, after the doctors were unable to help, and he was able to get me put back to rights.
However, the injury had weakened me, and I was unable to stay corrected on my own. Time flies when you are raising kids and working hard, and a couple of years or more went by without a visit to the chiropractor. Honestly I didn't realize it had been that long, all I knew was that I always hurt, and I couldn't bend over to pet the dog at my knee.
I would bend sideways in order to try to pet her, I would brace myself on my knees with my elbows to get the dishes out of the dishwasher, and I would forego fun things like bowling with my kids because it hurt too much. It all snuck up on me, and I didn't realize the pain I was in until it was too late.
So last January I went back to the chiropractor. He X-rayed my back and about ran into me trying to tell me how bad it was. "You are on your way to surgery if you don't do something NOW!"
And that was what it took to make my resolution stick. I don't usually make New Year's Resolutions because I don't keep them after a month or two, but I thought this would be an easy one to keep. I wanted it to be a quick adjustment, maybe a week or two of visits, and then I would be on my merry way.
No, it has been a year of adjustments, daily at first and now about twice monthly. I will always need adjustments. I have also learned how to recognize a problem and when to get it taken care of. I know to apply cold packs, take pain reliever, walk, walk, walk, and now I have added stretches which seem to help me go longer between adjustments.
I probably wouldn't have kept the resolution at the beginning if I had known how much work and money it would cost me, but knowing the alternative was surgery I was "resolute" to make my decision a reality.
If you have made a resolution this year, it will likely be tiresome to keep. It may be expensive, painful, frustrating, and you may sometimes be pushed backward on your road. BUT if you will keep the resolution, you just may bend over to pet the dog and find yourself touching your toes next December.