Good Morning Brown Clee! I hope you’ve had a good 2 week holiday and that you feel refreshed and ready for a new term. Not only is today the beginning of a new term but  we are also at the start of a new year – we are now in the year 2022! You will probably have heard many people wish you a ‘Happy New Year’! – as this is often a time when we think about new starts and make new promises to ourselves – do you know what these are called?

They are New Year’s resolutions – a resolution is a promise to ourselves to make a change, an improvement or a new start, when we turn over a new leaf!  Our resolution might be to work harder at school, to watch less TV, to keep our bedroom tidy or to do more exercise.  Have any of you made any resolutions?

The tricky thing is often sticking to them and keeping them going!

I’m going to share some examples of new year’s resolutions with you – have a listen and a think:-

Resolution 1: Meet Mike – Mike’s resolution for 2022 was that he was going to improve his football. He would practise hard every week and not miss any training sessions, even early morning ones in the rain. He would score brilliant goals and make his team proud of him. He might even become a football star!  Then this happened:

What do you think has happened? How is Mike feeling? What could he do now?

Resolution 2: Meet Emma – Emma’s resolution for 2022 was that she was going to control her anger. Her brother kept annoying her, her big sister kept teasing her and her mum was always on at her to tidy her room. She decided that she would count to 10, stay calm and let it all wash over her.  Then this happened…

What do you think has happened? How is Emma feeling? What could she do now?

Resolution 3: Meet Skip. Skip is a lovely dog, but he has an unfortunate habit of chewing the furniture, among other things. His owner’s resolution for Skip in 2022 was that Skip was not going to chew the furniture, the cushions, the football or Dad’s paper, even though it might be much more fun! Instead, Skip’s owner would train him to chew only his bone and the old slipper in his bed.  Look what’s happened…

What do you think has happened? How is Skip feeling? What could he do now?

In all these resolutions, things went badly wrong for Mike, Emma and Skip – they broke their resolution – so they now have a choice: they can either give up, or get over it and start again.   What do you think they should do?……

……absolutely – they need to get over it and just start again!

New starts are not easy. A new start suggests that there is something to put right or to improve, some area in which we may have struggled with before. At first, we might have a lot of enthusiasm and be encouraged by small successes. However, as time goes on, we might forget and stop trying, so that before we know it, we have given up. We have failed to achieve our hopes, which can often lead us to think that it’s all doom and gloom.

But it isn’t – when things go wrong – we just need to shake ourselves off, pick ourselves up and start again!  Trying to make a new start is always worth it….it’s the only way that we can learn.  Can you think of some words that you know that mean this?

So try and remember, as you go through the year ahead – that no matter how wrong things may go, no matter what mistakes you make – you just need to pick yourself up and start again – persevere!

Prayer of the Day

Think for a few moments about Mike, Emma, Skip and his owner.

Should they give up on their resolutions? Or should they get over their failure and make a new start?

What about your resolutions? What will you do if you forget them or make a mistake?

Dear God,
Thank you that each new day is a day full of opportunities.
Thank you that each new year is full of opportunities to try new things and to have a fresh start.
Please help us when we make mistakes and fail to achieve our hopes and dreams.
Help us to shake off any doom and gloom and get up and get going again.
Amen.