Thoughts on 2006

Part of a personal reflection on 2006

For the past seven or eight years I’ve made a habit of sending out a collection of thoughts on New Year’s Eve to those I consider friends. It’s been harder this year to put ideas to written word. There are times when neither written nor verbal language can communicate everything that’s flitted through this mind.

The world seems to be enveloped in never ending turmoil. We near the 3,000 mark of American lives lost in Iraq. The political arena received a well pronounced wake up call this November and the middle class in America now fear for their jobs and their health in the wake of enormous social and economic changes.

Should it frighten us?

If one dwells on the uncertainties that exist then yes, it should, but as surely as the spirit can be overwhelmed by life; it is also the only thing that can triumph over struggles.


So here’s the diatribe this year. Thoughts on the year and conclusions I’ve come to. They may change before 2008, who knows, but for now they appear to be helping me find my way

Life truly is short and we should live it with as much zeal and gusto as we can.(I miss you, Steve. I wish I’d held to this while you were with us. - No, not all of you will understand that.)

Peace can elude us so easily so when we find it we need to hang on for all we’re worth and cherish it as long as it lasts.

Struggles can sometimes weigh us down but we have to remember that we never walk truly alone. God is with us and often he sends friends to remind us we don’t walk a solitary path.

We need to stop wanting to become someone new and begin appreciating who we already are. Everyone has room for improvement but no one and no essence is without merit.

If you see yourself as lacking the world will echo that vision. If you see yourself as a success no one will ever question whether you are one or not.

“Things” are nice but they don’t determine happiness. They should be icing on the cake and not the mix itself.

No one else is responsible for our happiness other than us, ourselves. If you don’t like something, change it. If you lack the initiative to change then ask yourself if you’re the one unhappy or whether others are influencing you to feel that way.
And if others are the deciding factor on how we see ourselves, ask why you trust yourself so little.

Labels mean nothing in this world. We’re individuals. If you see yourself pigeon holed into a “group” then ask yourself why you are so aware of what others think and believe.

Laughter heals our hearts and makes our souls young. If your day doesn’t begin and end with laughter maybe it’s time to take stock of your life and see if it went astray.

Know yourself. Know your strengths and your weaknesses. There is nothing wrong with failure unless it leads you to blame others and assume knowledge you don’t have. If we don’t fail we never learn.

and here’s the big one I’m working on
Know when to say enough. Don’t bite off so much for others that you don’t have time for yourself. If YOU don’t invest time in who you are and what you can be, how do you expect others to appreciate you?

I’m not making resolutions this year. I don’t personally care for them. The desire to make promises that are often too perfect as to be obtainable isn’t in me. Goals are too easily set too high and often broken so instead of setting myself up for failure I’m just going to keep working on life and see where that takes me.

I hope your day and your new year brings a smile for your lips, laughter to dwell in your heart and love to fill your life.