December 2010

So, a new year is here. What will this year bring me? I know that I can count on laughing a lot this year. I also know that I can count on shedding tears. I know that I will experience joy. But I will also experience despair. There will be big frustrations and big achievements. I know all of this because this is what happens every year to all of us. We never get happiness alone. If we did, we would not appreciate it. We need to have sadness to realize how special happiness is.

We also need to have challenges, disappointments and despair in our lives. Without them, we would never grow. We would have no reason to. Without all of these challenges, we would become stagnant. We would probably devolve. We would become blobs. We become better humans when we are forced to grow and change and evolve! And, yes, we have to be forced to change. We all inherently resist change. We are all more comfortable with what we know. The unknown is scary.

The trick to appreciating life is to embrace both the bad and the good. We need both in order to become a complete, well-rounded human. We need both to fully appreciate all of life’s gifts. And all of these experiences are gifts. It just may take you awhile to figure out what the gift you are being given is!

So, enjoy the journey. Even if you are not sure where you are going, it is still a special journey and yours alone. Savor every moment of it. Love the people you meet along the way.  Appreciate the growth you are experiencing, even when it hurts. And never, ever give up hope. Happy New Year!