During a time of year when many people are taking stock of the previous twelve months and preparing for new resolutions and fresh starts, take a brief contrarian turn and compose a personal essay that focuses on the well-trodden: old habits, die-hard routines, and tried-and-true tendencies. What are some things that you’d passionately never want to give up? Perhaps your essay is a compilation of a list of objects, behaviors, people, or traditions that have proven their worth over an extended period of time; or you might concentrate your essay on one specific subject, something dear you vow to hold onto. Are there trade-offs, sacrifices, or curiosities about the costs of keeping the old? How do you weigh any misgivings against your convictions?