241 years ago, on Christmas Eve, Thomas Paine’s article, The Crisis, was read to George Washington’s men. The next day, they crossed the Delaware River and eventually defeated the Hessians at Trenton, New Jersey.

The painting, Washington Crossing the Delaware, was done in Dusseldorf, Germany by Emanual Leutze. Seventy-five years after Washington crossed the Delaware River, the painting was sent to America. It is now on display at the American Gallery in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.

The first two lines set the stage for the entire article. “These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.” The American soldiers were filled with an overwhelming zeal to conquer the enemy on Christmas Day in 1776. Many scholars attribute it to this article.

Today we are not faced with foreign invaders on our shore. We are not in disarray militarily or economically as we were during the America Revolution. But, we have challenges. I think one of the greatest challenges we have today is our health. It is in crisis.

Most of you have heard the litany of how many people die each year from this or that disease. Or, how many people contract cancer, heart disease, or diabetes daily. It sounds almost epidemic. Yet, most of us do nothing other than making a few New Year’s Resolutions that aren’t kept mere weeks later.

Good health is difficult and easy today. It is difficult because we are not educated properly as to the causes of disease and what can be done about it. It is easy because we have daily access to everything we need to attain and maintain great health. Most of us don’t have a strong enough desire to change our lifestyles until faced with eminent disease or disability.

What is one New Year’s Resolution that can be adhered to by almost all of us? Start simple with serving size. Put away your dinner plates and eat only on your salad plates. The servings that adequately fill a salad plate will easily suffice your daily needs.

Don’t go back for seconds and don’t have a second plate for salad or bread. By choosing smaller serving sizes (and, you can do this at the restaurants you choose also), you limit the total calories you eat each day. It is not a big deal, but it is a significant start. And, it is an easy resolution to keep throughout 2018.

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