New Year... New View?

It happens every January.
I commit to making behavioral changes - diet, exercise, writing habits, de-cluttering the house - and by the 15th of the month, I've already fallen off the wagon. I'm back to eating junk food in a pile of dirty laundry.
This year, I've had to curb those commitments to myself: I had ankle surgery in late December, so exercise, drastic diet changes, and massive closet overhauls will have to wait. Since I spent the first two weeks of the new year stuck on the couch, I've been forced into being patient with myself. I've been looking at my daily habits from afar and realizing how much time I usually spend running in circles. I've had to let others help me out, and to let go of some activities I would normally see as necessary.
I do have plans for self-improvement and better habits this year. But those plans are much more realistic and detailed than my pie-in-the-sky resolutions usually are -- you know the ones, made from emotion when you can't button your pants after all the holiday feasting or when you lose a kid for three days in your spare closet. Because I couldn't act right away, and because I couldn't make empty promises to myself on December 31, my goals feel more attainable. I have already outlined the steps for achieving them, too. (What else was I going to do with all that time on the couch?)
So if you've already become frustrated with your new year's resolutions, maybe what you need is a little patience and a new view. 

Endless Possibilities: Getting a new view at Yayoi Kusama's Infinity Mirrors Exhibit - High Museum of Art, Atlanta.