I have been thinking about this for a while.  With life totally upside down due to Covid-19, how do we decide what our new year’s resolutions will be for 2021?  Should we have two sets of resolutions, one for continuation of life during the Covid-19 pandemic and another one for our lives post the Covid-19 vaccine?  It is getting harder to remember what “old” “normal” life was like. Will I want to go back to that fully or will there be aspects of 2020 life that I will want to keep in post-Covid-19 life?  To make my resolutions for 2021, I decided to stick with things I know for sure, goals I want to embrace no matter what form or direction of life comes my way.

After considerable consideration, my resolutions are: 

Resolution #1 – eat better.  One of my cookbook selections for 2020 was The VB6 Cookbook by Mark Bittman.  “VB6” stands for vegan before 6 pm.  The author’s thought behind this is to consume mainly vegan items before 6 pm, and after 6 pm one can include other items that are not plant-based, such as dairy and meat.  A healthy vegan diet offers many benefits, and this year has been a daily (sometimes hourly) reminder to me that one’s health is everything.

Resolution #2 – do all that I can to end, or at least reduce, the food insecurity of others.

Resolution #3 – be bold in cooking.  Make recipes that heretofore have intimidated me (e.g. really fancy desserts that require multiple steps with special pans I will need to purchase and sometimes days to make, and many classic French recipes by Julia Child).  I will set a goal of what I want to make, read the recipe and any other instructions, perhaps watch instructional videos on YouTube, and then do it.

Resolution #4 – buy local and grow as much as I can.  Even with my city life tiny yard and garden, I plan to expand what I plant in 2021.  My garden will include old standbys (sour cherries, garlic, tomatoes, peppers, beans, scallions, leeks and squash) plus new additions of potatoes, beets, kohlrabi and carrots.  Every week in 2021, I will visit at least one farmers market, and I will shop at local food markets and restaurants that are not national chains.  #supportlocal

Resolution #5 – learn as much as I can about the food ways of others.  In all ways, their preferences, their food memories, and their ideas.

You might be thinking to yourself, Pixie, will you achieve your resolutions, how realistic are these? I mean, it is nice to have goals but let’s be real here, are these resolutions doable? I will be the first to admit that there have been years when my new year’s resolutions petered out, and sometimes not even lasting to March!  But my resolutions for 2021 feel different. Maybe it’s because after 2020 I know myself better, including my strengths and weaknesses. My confidence has grown because of this. My priorities, the things that really matter to me are crystal clear. I have to give credit to 2020 for this.

Pixie Millet, December 31, 2020