HOPE:" Hope is not the closing of your eyes to the difficulty, the risk, or the failure. It is a trust that if I fail now, I shall not fail forever; And if I am hurt, I shall be healed. It is a trust that life is good, love is powerful and the future is full of promise! Author unknown Powerful words, don't you think? As I was struggling to write this month's newsletter, I stumbled across this quote I keep in my wallet. It really moved me this time and I kept coming back to it, because it reminds me of what the New Year holds for each of us; hope! Hope for a better tomorrow that is filled with greater health, love, peace and happiness, etc. The New Year represents a fresh start, clean slate or second chance. It's the time of year when we reflect on the past and renew our commitment to become our best selves and do more than we've previously done. To paraphrase Denzel Washington, "I really believe we are already great and destined to leave some kind of mark in this world. I also believe we're meant to walk a certain path at a certain time and meet up with certain people who help shape our lives. From time to time we hit bumps in the road, miss the marks along the way and need a push to get us back on track." Happy New Year MEME 2020 Getting back on track requires rest and reflection though so we can process where we've been, how much we've grown and how much stronger we are as a result of our successes and failures. With that knowledge, we then can gratefully and gracefully release the past and renew ourselves by creating a new course of action which opens doors to our future. So as you start fresh this New Year, I invite you to first reflect on all you've accomplished this past year. This is a great exercise to write down on paper because we don't always realize how much we've achieved and grown until we do so. You'll be amazed how much more you will remember and be proud of, which will only fuel you with more HOPE for an even better New Year! Let It Begin With YOU! Tips for creating successful resolutions Try Again. We've all broken past resolutions but that doesn't mean you can't be successful. Think positive and about what obstacles got in your way last time. How will this goal end differently this year? Or, do you need to let it go? Don't make too many resolutions. Deciding to lose weight, exercise more, get a new job and quit smoking is too much to tackle at once. Choose the most pressing issue and stick to it. Trying to do everything at once practically guarantees failure. Choose your own goal. Before you decide what to commit to make sure you are the primary reason for setting this goal vs. friends, family or society. Do I feel energized by this goal? Does this goal fit into my life purpose? Devise a plan and write it down. Plan what you'd like to accomplish in small increments. Small goals give you a sense of accomplishment and keep you motivated. Write them down. It's a fact: writing down your goals gives you higher chance of success. Believe and visualize. There are hundreds of stories about the power of visualization in helping people achieve their goals. Hence the saying, if you can see it, you can believe it... so visualize once a day. What would it look like? How would it feel? Tell People. Let your biggest fans in on your new goals for the new year. Get Accountability. Better than telling others about your goals is getting accountability. Meet with a group or friends who will ask you, "how's your goal going." Hire a coach. Talk with your partner and ask for support! Focus with helpful reminders. Once you've got your goals in place, figure out ways to remind yourself. Put post it notes on your bathroom mirror, in your car, on your calendar. Find ways that work for you. Forgive yourself. If you get off track, don't give up.. No one is perfect and persistence is the key. Review your plan, make necessary adjustments and get back on track. Celebrate. Reward yourself when you reach your goals! Amy Coughlin is a Certified Wellness Coach whose practice is designed to educate and empower individuals to take significant and preventative steps in their long-term health and wellness. Ultimately, her education, coupled with her expertise in corporate training and recruitment, has inspired her to coach individuals and corporate groups in wellness education programs. If you want to improve your food, mood, and life, call me to experience a complimentary health history. You will be glad you did!

One of the most memorable New Year's Eve celebrations I have ever attended was in Pietralunga, Italy. My husband, Bert, and I had left the States the day after Christmas and arrived at our house, Caifiordi, on Dec. 27th. Our initial plan had been to spend a quiet New Year's Eve with a home cooked Italian meal by the fireplace at Caifiordi. Nothing wrong with that plan; it would have been delightful. Our sense of adventure took over, however, when we heard that one of the hotels in Pietralunga had a huge New Year's Eve celebration including dinner and dance. At this point in time, our Italian was deplorable so we were very uncertain as to the details of this celebration. The only thing we knew for certain was the location. So we dressed in our finery and made our way to the Candeletto, the Swiss looking hotel in the tourist zone outside Pietralunga.

We arrived a little after 8, which we thought would be in keeping with the normal Italian custom of eating dinner late. We also arrived without reservations, something we never even considered necessary. Of course, as our luck would have it, the restaurant was full, not a spare seat to be seen, and the antipasti was already being served. An understanding restaurant manager, realizing that we were strangers, demonstrated the exuberant Umbrian hospitality I have come to know and love. He quickly set up a table for two near a much larger group, served us antipasti and wine and otherwise settled us into a long evening of food and festivities. Happy New Year GREETINGS 2020

And then the food. There are simply no words to describe the quality and quantity of the food we ate that evening or the flourish with which each course was presented. The antipasti consisted of various traditional meats and cheeses, olives, and crostini (small rounds of baquette covered with spreads made of chicken pate, olive paste or vegetable pate). Then the pasta-not one kind but two. The first with a white sauce and the local procini mushrooms so highly prized in this part of Umbria. The second with a heartier red ragu sauce. In between the courses, in the Italian way, was time to engage in conversation and people watching-probably designed as an aid to the digestion. Now the meat course-beautiful pieces of pork, lamp, and chicken-with vegetable side dishes. Then the salad served in the European custom last as an aid to digestion. Following that were fruit and two desserts. Throughout we had been served various white and red wines to complement each course and, just at the stroke of midnight, a glass of prosecco (the Italian sparkling wine) arrived. We all went outside onto the terrace where we would look down onto the lights of Pietralunga. We had sparklers to waive while we drank our prosecco, the bells rang out and everyone wished each other "auguri"-"anno nuovo felice"-congratulations, happy new year.

Back inside, just when I thought we would be leaving for hearth and home, coffee was served and the dancing began. And, oh, do the Italians dance. Grandmothers dance with granddaughters; men with men; women with women; old men with younger children; lovers with lovers. In fact, everyone in the place was dancing except for the only two Americans there-my husband and me. We did not know the dances being danced-the mazurka, the Viennese waltz, the polka. So, I tapped my foot in time with the music. In the meantime, we had made friends with the large group seated next to us-no one deterred by the lack of a mutual language. At one point, with an inquiring glance toward my husband, one of the men took me onto the dance floor where I stumbled through a polka-both highly entertaining for others to watched and being highly entertained by the pure joy of the occasion. And the Italians dance for hours. Once begun, the dancing lasted until the wee hours of the morning when exhausted and stuffed like the proverbial Christmas goose, Bert and I went home to sleep for almost an entire day. It takes a great degree of stamina to celebrate Italian style.

So as we approach this New Year's Eve in the US, my mind will be on the terrace outside the Candeletto wishing "auguri" to my Italian friends. And so I wish it to you. Anno nuovo felice.