My New Year’s Resolution(s)

Over Christmas break, I engaged in a very scholarly, yet rare, activity for me: leisure reading. I was given a non-fiction book written by commercial pilot Capt. Chesley Sullenberger called "Highest Duty." Sullenberger landed US Airways flight 1549 in the Hudson River last January without a single casualty and was instantly crowned a national hero. After receiving the book, I immediately began to read and, 5 days later, finished the 321-page novel, giving me inspiration for my first resolution: to do more leisure reading.

I was moved while reading the book, which was one reason I flew through it so quickly. Reading about Sullenberger, or “Sully,” and his life as it lead up to the events on January 15, 2009, made me shake my head in amazement at the integrity he possessed. Throughout the book, I noticed several reoccurring themes: responsibility, duty and preparedness. Time and time again he reiterates with anecdotal stories and life experiences that his ability to land that plane safely was the cumulative result of years of doing the right thing and doing what he believed in.

After a particularly poignant paragraph, page or chapter, I paused to reflect on Sully’s words and draw connections from his life to mine. No, I didn’t land an Airbus jet in the Hudson, but I did recognize certain similarities between us. However, I also realized that Sully, on a day to day basis, acted on a higher wavelength than most people, including myself. Many times throughout the book I thought: “Am I like that?,” “Do I do that?” or “Would I do that?” At the end, as cheesy as it may sound, I made myself a promise that I wanted to be more like Sully.

Sully told a story of how, after a long flight and an even longer day, he helped a young couple find their baby stroller. It was 10:30PM and the terminal was about to close for the night yet he went out of his way to help them find the missing stroller in baggage claim. He wrote, “A flight attendant saw me helping them and commented that not every pilot … would bother to help .... It was an awfully simple thing I had done …. And yet, I understood completely what (she) meant.”

So what’s my point? My point is that people should be more thoughtful, be more considerate of others and of their surroundings. You should move past yourself and not be so focused on your life that you ignore the fellow person right beside you who may be in need. Take a second out of your day and help others, whether it’s tomorrow, next week or next year.

Like Sully on that cold afternoon in January, we all have an unwavering responsibility to help one another. He, as the Captain of that plane, had a responsibility and a duty to act to make the best out of a perilous situation. I’m not saying that you need to save lives, but the next time someone needs help, take a moment and do what’s right without thinking about what’s convenient for you. It will make you feel better and it will most certainly make them feel better.

Finishing this book gave me inspiration for my second New Year’s resolution: be nicer on a day-to-day basis and pay forward the kindness others have shown me.