Worst Year Passed ... Really?

January 1st 

New year ... sure, but the last year was less than 24 hours ago.

New thoughts ... true, but they are formed from the same brain, driven by the same heart.

New choices ... unquestioningly possible, but only with careful thought and an open mind.

New words ... they circle and and crowd my thoughts, wanting to be written, to be shared, to be expressed.

New year ... a time for thoughts, for choices, for words.  It has been more than a year's span of time since I have expressed opinions, shared ideas, taken the opportunity to write.  New year's resolutions are about making changes to routines from the previous year.  I'm not good at making resolutions, they tend to break, but I do know I want to make different choices this year.  My choice about my writing is one of them in this new year of 2017.  

However, before moving forward into the new, I need to say something about the old.  

Many say that the last year was "the worst" but how can I truly believe that if I have been able to safely wake in the morning from a night's sleep, put my feet on the floor of a warm house (if it's cold outside), have food for breakfast, lunch AND dinner available, go to work - doing a job I like and earning the money it takes to keep that home and food, not to mention other creature comforts - and be able to come home each evening to a small companion who is forever grateful for me and loves me unconditionally?  How can that be the "worst"?

I am not saying that the last year didn't have difficult times, heartbreaking moments, or occasions of total exasperation.  I'm also not denying that there are many who were not as blessed as I was during 2016 ... that many people didn't have a good night's sleep, or a warm house in the winter, or food for meals and jobs for earning money.  Unfortunately, those were the same circumstances in 2015 ... 2014 ... 2013 ... etc.  

I'm simply saying that labeling 2016 as the "worst" year ever due certain events that took place is a bit over-dramatic and, not to be insulting, but, silly.

One example ... there have been worse years than the one that heralded the loss of many beloved celebrities ... at least, because they WERE celebrities, their lives were immortalized in ways that their legacies live on.  I hope they deserve that.  I know some do but some ... well ... hmm, food for thought for another day.

But here is the thing about the "worst" year just passed ... others died too.  What about the senior citizen who died a quiet death due to stage 4 pancreatic cancer that had moved to his brain?  He died alone in a VA ward, without family, without money to his name, with only a kind-hearted woman that he had met one day at the IHOP when she offered to cut his pancake as she walked by his booth and noticed he was having difficulty.  Is his loss to this world any worse than that of a songwriter, author, actress, or sports figure?  He wasn't "important" but he had been married ... twice ... to women who loved him and unfortunately died before him.  He wasn't a celebrity but he had fought for our country in two different wars, one before he was legally able to enlist.  He didn't write music or a book but he had worked hard all his life, provided for two children that he survived, and was unfailingly cheerful.  He went to church when he could, prayed when he couldn't and simply believed - not pushing his "religion" upon anyone.  He was abrupt in his opinions and had choice words for those he believed to be doing wrong, but he worked hard to do what was right.  Yet he has no real legacy than the memory of him left to those he encountered - some memories fleeting of a passerby and some more poignant of those that took the time to talk with him. 

Each year that passes is both good and bad, best and worst.  I choose to look at the good and the best, not ignoring the bad or worst, because without them there really isn't any "good" or "best".  I don't ignore those things that are bad or considered "worse" but I choose not to allow them to dictate how I feel or perceive the world around me.  Times are changing ... they always are ... 2017 will include death, it will include fear, it will include people disagreeing and fighting, it will ... unfortunately ... include ignorance and hate.  That is a part of life.

(And before I get slammed ... just because I choose to not to look at the world as "going to hell", doesn't mean I don't live in it, see/recognize the reality of it and work each day to make it a better place.  It is just my choice to keep my actions between myself and those organizations and individuals private.)  

But 2017 ... just like 2016 did ... will include births of regular people and future celebrities, it will include families spending time together, it will include moments of happiness, beautiful days, and people coming together, working together, discussing pros and cons and not killing each other just because they disagree, but celebrating when they find a course of agreement.  

2017 provides opportunities for me to make changes I didn't make last year ... write words I didn't write last year ... learn things I didn't learn last year ... to choose to work hard to make it a good year - despite all the "worst" things that can and will happen.   

This from the person who is the same person she was last year ... you know ... 18 hours ago.  

Happy New Year ... and welcome to my little corner of the world.  I've neglected it.  I'm making a choice to rectify that ... something that will make 2017 better than 2016 ... in my opinion.