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Baby Steps to a Life Well Lived

Dec 31, 2025 09:27AM ● By Marlaina Donato

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 Breathing in the fresh air of a new year can be both invigorating and a little intimidating. We are encouraged to set resolutions, dive headfirst into greater and better lives, and release outdated beliefs. What can begin as a promising path of good intentions may quickly become overwhelming. By spring, some of us may not even remember our January aspirations. But if we silence the well-meaning shoulds and have-tos, it is possible to confidently step into a new chapter at our own pace, increasing our chances of success.

This year, instead of lofty resolutions, let’s choose baby steps toward better health or a more peaceful life, basing our hopes on realistic simplicity and modifying our goals into small dedications—sacred vows we uphold and share only with those we trust. Just as a tiny seed lies dormant in the frozen earth waiting for the right moment to transform, we can rise at the perfect time and reveal our vibrant potential. Allotting a little time each day to baby steps can become something to eagerly await—writing another paragraph of that novel-in-progress, cooking something delicious that nourishes the body, learning a few words in a language course or simply saying no to anything that distracts us from nurturing our growth or bliss.

Twelve months is not long to transform, build a business or heal on the cellular level. Reaching the end of another year without crossing our personal finish line does not mean we have failed. It simply offers us another opportunity, another 12 months, to continue investing in our baby steps. New year’s resolutions can be a way of living without deadlines.

 

Ideas for a brand-new year:

  •  Allot 10 minutes twice a day for true self-care, which might include meditation, stillness, listening to music or a few invigorating stretches.

  • ·Allocate three hours a week for a cherished project.

  • ·View goals as sacred.

Marlaina Donato is an author, painter and composer. Connect at WildflowersAndWoodSmoke.com.


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In-Print, Inspiration National Content January 2026

 

 

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Tick Tackler

Spring officially sprung on March 21. We have turned our clocks ahead. We are looking forward to warm winds, sunny skies and the smell of fresh cut grass. The daffodils and tulips have recently bloomed and we are just starting with the yard work that comes with the warmer weather.  Sadly, another season has started ramping up.  Tick season.

•             The best form of protection is prevention. Educating oneself about tick activity and how our behaviors overlap with tick habitats is the first step.

•             According to the NJ DOH, in 2022 Hunterdon County led the state with a Lyme disease incidence rate of 426 cases per 100,000 people. The fact is ticks spend approximately 90% of their lives not on a host but aggressively searching for one, molting to their next stage or over-wintering. This is why a tick remediation program should be implemented on school grounds where NJ DOH deems high risk for tick exposure and subsequent attachment to human hosts.

•             Governor Murphy has signed a bill that mandates tick education in NJ public schools. See this for the details.  Tick education must now be incorporated into K-12 school curriculum. See link:

https://www.nj.gov/education/broadcasts/2023/sept/27/TicksandTick-BorneIllnessEducation.pdf

•             May is a great month to remind the public that tick activity is in full swing. In New Jersey, there are many tickborne diseases that affect residents, including Anaplasmosis, Babesiosis, Ehrlichiosis, Lyme disease, Powassan, and Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiosis.

•             For years, the focus has mainly been about protecting ourselves from Lyme disease. But other tick-borne diseases are on the rise in Central Jersey. An increase of incidence of Babesia and Anaplasma are sidelining people too. These two pathogens are scary because they effect our blood cells. Babesia affects the red blood cells and Anaplasma effects the white blood cells.

•             Ticks can be infected with more than one pathogen. When you contract Lyme it is possible to contract more than just that one disease. This is called a co-infection. It is super important to pay attention to your symptoms. See link.

https://twp.freehold.nj.us/480/Disease-Co-Infection

A good resource from the State:

https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/topics/tickborne.shtml

 

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