Happy New Year – a cooking pot and twisted tales

Hello there,

Is it still okay to say Happy New Year, given that the barrage of eventful incidents around the world already makes the year feel prematurely hectic?
Nonetheless, I would still like to wish a Happy New Year to you and your loved ones. I hope you had a fairly decent Christmas and New Year holidays?
Personally, I had a good one, and I am thankful for that. The tail-end of December 2024 saw several fatal plane crashes and 2025 began with the mayhem of a terrorist attack on New Year’s Eve.
I am not sure I will ever understand how any human becomes so evil-minded that they construe despicable ways to harm others needlessly. Severe mental ill-health aside, it takes another level of twisted mind and depravity for anyone desire and to meticulously plan on how to carry out certain nefarious acts.
The total disregard for the sanctity of human life in today’s world makes one wonder. What manner of diabolical pleasure drives such people? How did they become like this? So many questions swirl in my head and leaves me feeling sad at times that such people exist alongside those who simply want to live their lives happily and peacefully.

I sincerely pray that the rest of the year brings better tidings and brighter days for every single one of us and that the year 2025 is indeed a happy and prosperous one. My condolences to the families affected by these tragedies and may the souls of the faithful departed rest in peace.

As always, the hand of time turns effortlessly and before you finish clinking your champagne glass, a day goes by, the 2, 3, and they all roll along to weeks, months and then its year end again, when we rush to meet deadlines, get to sing Christmas carols, feel warm and fuzzy and hey presto! Happy new year greetings are being exchanged once more and we are caught in the New Year resolution fever.

Armed with good intentions, gratitude for the blessings of the past year and surviving the vagaries that comes with living, we eagerly usher in the New Year completely determined to do our best and to get the best out of the year.

A lot of us say things like: ‘this is my year,’ ‘this year will be magical,’ ‘I will have so many breakthroughs this year,’ etc. and the list goes on.

All well and good. Seeking to be better than we were and doing better than we did is always commendable, but the question remains, how dogged, dedicated and passionate are we to truly arrive at these demanding goals that we set for ourselves at the beginning of each year? Or are we just going forward making a wishful list without the backbone to see them through thereby leading ourselves down the path of breaking of resolutions before they have even taken off and multiple disappointments over time? There is nothing wrong with setting goals, but goals without the right systems put in place will place will most certainly fall apart.

As always, I say, live your best life in the moment, try to stay accountable so that you can be the best version of you each day every day in all ramifications and as the moments roll by, it is far easier accomplishing those aspirations. Of course, life happens and sometimes things outside our control happens. Nonetheless, it is not always about what happened to us that’s the issue, it’s about how we react to what happened. It’s about how we rise from the dust of a situation, dust ourselves off and keep pushing and most times, it is easier to pick up from where you left off when your actions are almost second nature.

Think on these thoughts succinctly whilst attempting to revamp your entire life.
What are the deep lessons that you learnt the last 365 days of 2023 and how do you intend to leverage on them?

Happy New Year to you and your beloved ones’. May 2024 be kind to all of us.