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Like You is a production of Perpetual Motion. The show is written and produced by Noah Glenn. The show’s artwork was illustrated by Mia Saine. Episode art is created by Lindsey Glenn.

This episode features original music by Noah Glenn. 

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Noah:  Happy New Year everyone! Let’s make it a great year together. Remember to subscribe to Like You on your favorite podcast app, so you never miss an episode. You can also be a part of helping us produce new episodes by making a small monthly donation at Patreon.com/likeyoupodcast. And if you want to help others find out about us, you can tell your friends about the show or leave a 5 star review on Apple Podcasts. Now let’s start the show!

[intro music]

Hello! I’m Noah and this is Like You, a mindfulness podcast for kids. I’m so glad you’re here! Today we’ll talk about new year’s resolutions and also maybe come up with our own new year’s affirmations. So listeners of all ages, find a place to listen where you feel comfortable and safe. As I ask questions and invite you to say affirmations, you’re welcome to speak out loud, or as always, you can just think your responses quietly in your mind.

Recently there were a few very foggy days where I live, and it got me thinking how I wish I could just blow the fog away. So that’s what we’ll do for our breathing exercise today. Close your eyes if that helps you imagine. Now picture a grey foggy day. It’s like a cloud has descended from the sky and covered up everything around you. You can only see a few feet in front of you. You can’t see any trees, you can’t see any flowers, you can’t see the blue sky, and you can’t even see the sun. Let’s blow away the fog to clear up our view and see how far we can see. Take a deep breath in, 1-2-3, then blow a big long breath. It’s still pretty foggy. Let’s try another breath. Deep breath in 1-2-3. Now blow the fog away as hard as you can. Things are starting to clear up a bit. You can just barely make out a few trees now. Keep going. Let’s try a few deep breaths in a row. Breathe in 1-2-3. And now blow a long breath out. Another breath in, and out. The fog is starting to blow away! Keep going! In and out! In and out! Great job. Now all the fog is gone and you can see that you are surrounded by trees and flowers. The sky is blue, and the sun is shining down to warm you up. Now on the count of three, we’ll all say I like me. 1-2-3. I like me.

I like you too. You are full of warmth and you radiate joy. I look forward to growing and learning with you this year.

Well friends, it’s a brand new year. Did you and your family do anything to celebrate the new year?

Many people try to stay up late on New Year’s Eve to welcome the new year as soon as it arrives. Some people also have special food they eat on New Year’s Day to bring luck in the new year. In my family, we eat cornbread, greens, and black eyed peas for our New Year’s Day meal. It’s one of my favorite meals of the year. Did you eat any of those things on New Year’s Day? Or does your family have different traditional New Years foods? In some places it is traditional to eat 12 grapes at the stroke of midnight. Other cultures eat noodles on new year’s day, or mochi, or tamales, or pickled fish.

Whatever way your family celebrated, I hope you had a fun time saying goodbye to last year and hello to the new year.

Today we’ll talk about another very common tradition, setting new year’s resolutions. Have you set any resolutions for the new year? If you already have, take a few moments to recall it and think about it. If you haven’t set any resolutions – or if you’re not even sure what that word resolution means – no worries, we can come up with some together. A resolution means that you’ve made a decision to do something, or to not do something. It’s kind of like a goal. For instance you might decide to read more books this year, or to spend more time outside. You might decide to set a goal to learn something new like how to paint or play guitar or ride a bike. Or you might resolve to focus on developing a certain trait – like practicing kindness, or working on being brave, or using empathy to consider how others are feeling.

Other times a resolution isn’t about doing something new at all. It can actually be about deciding NOT to do something, or at least to do something less. You might decide to watch less TV or play fewer video games, and to spend that time doing other things you enjoy.

Since you’re the kind of kid who enjoys listening to mindfulness podcasts, maybe your resolution could have something to do with mindfulness. If you haven’t already thought of a resolution here are a few ideas of what a resolution might sound like. I’m going to say a few resolutions, and at first it might sound similar to the affirmations we often say. In some ways resolutions actually are similar to affirmations, and we’ll talk about that later. But for now there’s no need to repeat these resolutions. You can just listen while I say a few examples and see if these inspire any of your own resolutions. Here we go.

I will use my words to tell others how I’m feeling.

When I feel angry, I will take deep breaths to calm down.

I will be nicer to my brother or sister.

I will pay closer attention to the people around me.

I will practice mindfulness every day.

I will treat everyone I meet with respect and kindness.

I will listen to what my body is telling me.

I will learn to appreciate silence.

If I need help, I will ask for it.

I will practice loving myself by saying affirmations.

Did any of those ideas sound like resolutions you’d like to make for yourself? If you’ve decided on a new year’s resolution, go ahead and tell me what it is.

That’s great! You may even want to write it down somewhere you’ll see it often so you can keep practicing whatever your resolution may be.

Now I want to let you know something that’s important to know about resolutions. They can be very hard to keep. You might start the year by saying you’ll be nicer to you sister, and then a week later you realize you’re still arguing with her every day. Or you might say you’ll practice mindfulness every day, and then realize a whole week went by without doing it. It’s ok if you don’t keep your resolution perfectly. The resolution is just about trying your best to learn or grow in whatever way you think you would like to. So decide what you’d like to do, then do your best, but remember it’s ok if things don’t work out perfectly.

With that in mind, I want to suggest that in addition to a new year’s resolution you could also choose a new year’s affirmation. Remember, affirmations are words you can say about yourself to help you remember how wonderful you are. I always offer a few different affirmations on each episode of Like You. But you can say affirmations to yourself any time. You can write them on your school folders, or on a bookmark. You can even make up your own special affirmations that are unique to you. So a new year’s affirmation can be an affirmation you choose to say to yourself often this year. Maybe you’ll say it every morning when you brush your teeth, or every evening when you get in bed. I’ll say a few affirmations now. You can choose one of these if you like, or come up with your own later. I’ll say each affirmation twice. You can listen the first time, then say it with me the second time, either out loud or inside your mind.

This is going to be a good year.

Good things are coming my way.

Every day I will learn and grow.

It’s ok to make mistakes.

It is enough to do my best.

I love myself for who I am.

My mind is full of brilliant ideas.

I will share my joy with the world.

I’m in charge of my future.

I will learn from yesterday and live for today.

I believe in me.

Now smile and take a few slow, deep breaths as we wind down our time together. If any of those affirmations stood out to you, feel free to write them down, or just store them safely in your mind to say when you need it. If you’ve picked out a resolution or an affirmation for the new year, I would love to hear about it! If you’d like to share one with me, have a grownup record a voice memo of you saying your affirmation or resolution. They can email it to me at hello@likeyoupodcast.com. Or you can ask them to send us a message through instagram @likeyoupod. I may even share some of your affirmations on the podcast. For now, bring your resolution or your affirmation to the front of your mind and spend the next few minutes thinking about it as you listen to this song.

I’m growing

I’m growing

With each new thing I’m knowing I

Am growing body, heart and mind

I’m learning

I’m learning

Each day the earth is turning and

I know a little more each time

I’m listening

I’m listening

The world around is whispering and

I learn so much from what I find

I’m growing

I’m growing

With each new thing I’m knowing I

Am growing body, heart and mind

I can’t wait to spend some time together again soon. Until then, I like you, I’m proud of you, and I’m glad we are friends. Have a happy and peaceful day.

Like You is a production of Perpetual Motion. It is made possible by our supporters on Patreon. Become a supporter by visiting Patreon.com/likeyoupodcast. Like You is written and hosted by me, Noah Glenn. I also composed and performed the Like You theme music and other music that appeared in the episode. Our podcast cover art was illustrated by Mia Saine. Our episode art is created by Lindsey Glenn. If you’ve enjoyed the podcast, I hope you’ll tell your friends, and leave a 5 star review on Apple Podcasts. You can send us voice memos, drawings, and pictures by having a grownup send an email to hello@likeyoupodcast.com or if you follow us on instagram, send us a direct message there. Visit our website at likeyoupodcast.com to find show notes, transcripts for each episode, an online shop, and other info about the show. Be sure to follow us on instagram, Facebook, and twitter @likeyoupod. Thanks for listening!