Expect nothing if you give nothing. A number on a calendar is not something that can or will give you hope and success.
Blaming 2016 for a bad year was a distraction that ironically helped make 2016 one of the worst years most of us have experienced because we blamed it on a number. 2017 was essentially the fall-guy. And the outcomes are quite serious.
1. Nothing had consequence.
From Trump’s rise to power to David Bowie’s passing, it all fell into the bracket of “oh well, another shitty thing this year did to us”.
2. Nothing had longevity, tragedies we minimised.
Well, not meaningful longevity anyway. We lost beloved celebrities and saw tragedies unfold globally, but most people couldn’t list 5 of them as we have moved on. None of those moments were treated individually, instead they were added to the list of things we didn’t have control of, and forgotten.
3. Our fear was compounded, good was ignored.
Our fear and hatred was validated over and over again, “yet another 2016 tragedy”. We started to fear the number, fear who would be next, ignoring the good that was happening around us.
4. We’ve given ourselves permission to forget it all.
It’s 2017 now, and we now have permission to forget all the shitty things that happened, to write off 2016 as the past and to move on… right? Well, that depends on your approach to the year.
This year I plan on making some serious changes to how I deal with the world. I am determined to become more active and to not only voice my opinions and beliefs, but make something of them. No matter how small my piece of the universe is, I am determined to be more in control of it.
If we do anything this year, we need to take the outcomes of fate and consequence on our own shoulders, and realise our role in that.