Every year I make them and, subsequently, break them. That's right; clever Collegian reader. You guessed it. New Year's resolutions.

In the past, I've pledged to lose 10 lbs. (Virtually impossible in a world which has Haagen Daz), be more patient with others (How do you reason with a cop who tickets your car for being an inch over the chalk white lines?) and, my favorite Hallmark resolution: to be at peace with myself (Obviously, the people from Hallmark have not experienced finals week.)

However, this year I've decided to go public -- put my New Year's resolutions in print, so all of you can write me nasty letters when I fail to achieve my goals. Then again, columnists, critical as they are, do allow for that small margin of error when things go right instead of wrong.

So, without further ado, my promise to you: I, Denise M. Janssen, being of stressed mind, broken-down body and, somewhere in there, a soul, do solemnly swear to uphold the following New Year's resolutions:

• I promise to live. Okay, Janssen, who the hell are you kidding? A corpse certainly didn't write this column. But, at certain times last semester, I think I belonged to that contingency known as the living dead. That state of numbness and total oblivion to the conditions around me. The excuse that I had an 8:00 class only works so many times.

Thoreau once said, "Oh God, to have reached the point of death without ever having lived at all." The answer lies in living life with a passion. Think of the five senses: taste, touch, smell, hear, feel.

• I promise to taste homemade pasta for the rest of my life and appreciate the love (or linguini sauce) that goes with it.

• I resolve to touch a friend through perhaps a hug or a kind word, because these people are too damn important to lose touch with.

• Smelling can stand by itself.

• I want to hear the sounds of people laughing, crying and cheering during a moment of triumph, because it helps me to appreciate the human spirit.

• Finally, before I leave this lifetime, I'd like to feel that I was a participant, instead of letting life pass me by. Life isn't a spectator sport.

• I promise to love. The artist Van Gogh once said, "The best way to love life is to love many things." At present, there are a lot of things I care about in this world. But, I think the ones I'd like to focus on this year are the people: My family, who has given me a sense of roots and values. My friends, who I like to think of as my heart beats. They keep me going. The people I don't know on an intimate basis, but, in their own small way, have reinforced my need for contact with others. Love is a heartfelt emotion. And Helen Keller reminds us that the best and beautiful things can only be felt with the heart.

• Finally, I promise to learn. With a variety of educational opportunities at our disposal, some people might say that it's not very hard to learn at all. Leo Buscaglia suggests, however, that we are guilty of selective perception. We let certain things in and screen others out. Kind of like a partially exposed Polaroid. You don't get the full picture.

Although a good portion of my life has been spent learning in the classroom, I will try to remember that there are other important things to learn as well.

Things like lessons on self-worth, respect for other people; integrity and responsibility. We only get one shot in this lifetime to reach our full potential. I don't want to miss it.