Navigating the New Year 2021
It is over. 2020 has come to an end. As years go it was a hum dinger. It is a safe bet most people did not have even the slightest clue when as they rang out 2019 what they would experience in the next twelve months. So, it is understandable if they find themselves feeling a little trepidatious about jumping into the brand-new year 2021. One thing most know for sure is they really have no idea what is to come.
Still, there is a lot of good, there is always something positive if one is open to seeking the good. Perhaps it would be helpful to take a moment of introspection and look for the strength you found in yourself this past year. Perhaps you became a better parent, or partner? Maybe you became more patient or learned to appreciate people you paid little attention to in the past? The kid’s teachers, the checkout clerk at the grocery store, the trash collection crew—all those people who stayed the course and worked through it all just to keep things going.
Perhaps there are a few things you came to value less as a result of the 2020 experience? Who needs make-up below the eyes? Maybe you found your own natural unlacquered nails to be sturdy and lovely? Perhaps you are finding less value in stuff and more value in relationships and people? What if those folks who got stronger, kinder, closer to their friends and family all made an effort to hang on to that good, and carried it forward into this new year?
Wonder what would happen if they decided to love more and hate less? What if they all made a resolution to listen more, to try to understand the other side of the story? What if all decided to put problems on the table and worked with their neighbors, friends, coworkers, or family to find solutions instead of insisting on others accepting their solutions with no opportunity to contribute?
No one is helpless. Everyone can do something to make someone’s day better. It is a new year … share hope, be kind, love others as you love yourself and have a healthy, happy New Year 2021.
