.png)
THE CZECH IS IN THE MAIL
JASON CHLAPEK
New Year’s resolutions are fun to make — and sometimes break.
A year ago, a longtime friend and high school football coach won his first state championship after coaching at the same campus for 32 years. Last week, he led his team to another state championship.
While I’m not sure if my friend ever made a New Year’s resolution to win a state championship, I was sure happy for him the last two seasons.
The first of his two state championships inspired me to revive a resolution that seemed to elude me in previous years — purchasing a home.
A year ago, my wife, two daughters and I lived with my mom and grandma. While we were grateful for them allowing us to live there, we wanted a place of our own.
In mid-January, I had a phone interview for the position of area editor for the Taylor Press and Elgin Courier. Three weeks later, I started my tenure here, and it’s been a blessing.
My wife, kids and I moved into an apartment in Taylor. A few months later, our wishes for a home of our own came true.
On July 11, which also happens to be our youngest child’s birthday, we closed on a house. Not a bad “birthday present” for a 2-year-old.
Now that we have a home, we’re going to stick around for a while. We love it here in Central Texas.
Our 4-year-old loves her school, we love to go for walks around the neighborhood or Walmart or H-E-B, and we love being close enough to big-city amenities while being far enough away from heavy traffic.
It was great to see the New Year’s resolution of buying a home finally come to fruition.
My family and I have been blessed beyond all expectations in 2025. We hope and pray for more blessings — not just for us, but for you and your families.
As far as resolutions for 2026 go, I’m not going to make one about going to the gym or turning the garage into a martial art dojo. I don’t think my wife would give me her blessings on the garage anyway.
We would like to save more money, eat healthier, go for more walks, attend both church and read the Bible more often, etc. But other than those things, we’re grateful for our blessings and are wrapping up 2025.
Chlapek is the area editor of the Elgin Courier and Taylor Press. He can be reached at jason.chlapek@ granitemediapartners. com.
