Commentary - New Years Resolutions Published Jan. 5, 2016 By Chief Master Sgt. David Satchell USAF Expeditionary Operations School JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. -- On New Years 2011, my wife Liliana and I, set off to climb Koko Head mountain trail as part of our fitness goals for the New Year. We had just been assigned to Hickam AFB, Hawaii and were told that it was a must-do. A co-worker, who was not in amazing shape, referred to it as a "stroll". So, Lili and I stopped by Starbucks, chatted for a while, and then headed over to the trail with coffee in hand. Well, as the mountain came into full view, we were entering the parking lot-"holy crap!" Lili and I looked at each other without uttering a word. Lili in her strong Spanish accent, "This is es-stroll?" That's exactly what I was thinking. But I'm a man. I'm not afraid, right? So we headed up to conquer the 1,023 steps, straight up, which happens to have a beautiful scenic prize at the end. By the time I saw the 200-step marking, my heart had already been beating out of my chest. I looked over to Lili, "You OK?" She replied, "Yes, I'm fine." I know my wife, she wasn't OK, in fact, she's getting pale. "Go ahead papi, I'm fine!" We began to move a bit slower, passing the 350-step marker but being passed by two pregnant women chatting-they must have been in their 3rd trimester. I'm not kidding! Then, passed again by a tiny Asian woman and an 8 or 9 year old girl with flip-flops! By the time we reached the 700-step marker, I looked over to Lili. I could barely breathe. And she is not well. Her lips are blue! Luckily I grabbed the water bottle that was in my car, but by this time, it's one-quarter full. I looked at her, looked at the steps, took a dry swallow, peered at the steps again before I looked at her and gave her a sip and reluctantly poured the rest of the water on her head. Slowly coming out of her mouth, "Papi, I don't think we were ready for this." She was right-what a lesson! You see, there's no better time than the present to set a goal and New Years tends to be one of those times for self-reflection, especially as we exchange calendars. So do it.dream big and make them reality: DREAM - written down with a date becomes a GOAL - a goal broken down into steps becomes a PLAN - a plan backed by ACTION - makes your dreams REALITY Many have asked me, "What do I have to do to make Chief?" It's simple, be the best Staff Sergeant you can be or be the best Master Sergeant you can be. It's really that simple. As for me, I want to be the best husband I can be. The best father I can be. The best friend, David and golfer I can be. And last, be the best Chief I can be. This year, I wrote it all down, broke each of them into steps, and showed it to Lili to hold me accountable. Those are my goals this year, same as last year. But over on KoKo Head, we only made it to step 750 before we had to take the "turn of shame" and head back down. Finally, Lili's face began to regain color. She was talking again. As we took our final steps off trail, the two chatty pregnant ladies who made it to the top and back remarked, whew.what a workout! Then, the tiny Asian lady, brushing by me says, "So sorry you didn't make it." While the little girl, full of energy jumps off the the final step, "We did it in record time!" You should have seen the dirty looks we both gave them. Next time I'll plan for this stroll.