In a Diary entry dated Friday, Jan. 2, 1931, Virginia Woolf wrote the following New
Here are my resolutions for the next 3 months; the next lap of the year.
First, to have none. Not to be tied.
Second, to be free & kindly with myself, not goading it to parties: to sit rather privately reading in the studio.
To make a good job of The Waves.
To care nothing for making money.
As for Nelly, to stop irritation by the assurance that nothing is worth irritation: if it comes back, she must go . . .
Then — well the chief resolution is the most import — not to make resolutions. Sometimes to read, sometimes not to read. To go out yes – but stay at home in spite of being asked. As for clothes, I think to buy good ones.”
– Diary 4, pg. 3
All of them seem particularly appropriate for me, except one: I don’t have a Nelly to let go if I find her irritating.
If you want more, read this post that includes Woolf’s resolutions for 1933, and this one includes those for 1936.
