Christmas can be a difficult time for many people, so when it comes to the new year – it’s often seen as a time to refresh and restart.
That may be through new year’s resolutions, or just deciding to do something different or new.
Some people approach it with a sense of optimism – a new year, a new opportunity.
Some with hope – this year will be a better one.
But it can also be a time of uncertainly.
One of my friends shared a meme that cleverly labelled it as hopeism.
Not 100% hopeful, or 100% hopeless, but somewhere in the middle.
What does this year have instore for me?
Australia faces a federal election.
In America they will soon have a new president.
The conflict between Russia and Ukraine continues.
The unrest in the Middle East seems to be escalating.
While I’m not going to venture into politics here, all of this negativity can leave people feeling quite unsettled.
We’ve recently started building the Lego Ghostbusters’ car Ecto-1… (bear with me).
Which led to us watching Ghostbusters 1 and 2.
The gist of the second film is there’s so much hate and anger in New York city that it’s creating a vicious ectoplasm (or slimeflow) under the city.
When the Ghostbusters try to explain this to the Mayor his response is:
“What do you want me to do, go on television and tell three million people they have to be nice to each other? Being miserable and treating other people like dirt is every New Yorker’s god-given right.”
It really stuck me how apt that sounded.
Everyone seems so angry.
There is such a need for every leader around the world to not only tell (maybe ask, or urge are better words) people to be nice to each other, but to actually be nice themselves.
We all need a strong dose of kindness this new year.
Taking a deep breath before we snap.
Being mindful about our words and actions.
Then maybe we can approach the new year with a real sense of hope and optimism.
Otherwise we might all be calling the Ghostbusters in to fight our own city’s sludge!
Wishing you, and all of us, a happy 2025.
Ann 🙏