Welcome to a Clean Slate

January 1 is just another day on the calendar, but it is one of the most powerful days.  It is time for reflection of the past and looking forward hopefully to the future.  What makes it particular powerful, I think, is it the time of resolutions.  It is the time of year that we acknowledge the power we have in our own lives.  We don't depend on luck or fate, but, we determine how to make our lives better.  No one resolves to win the lottery, but we resolve to eat healthier, exercise more, spend more time with people we love, volunteer to make the world better, etc.  We believe we have a clean slate to begin again.  The first day of the rest of our lives.  Most people are unable to keep their resolutions to January 31, but we always start hopeful.  

Personally, I don't think 2017 was the best year of my life but I enjoyed many wonderful moments.  2017 was also not the worst year of my life, even though I experienced my share of lows.  One thing is that I feel that I have positioned myself to make 2018 very successful.  

When I look for resolutions, I look to one of my heros, financial adviser Gail Vaz-Oxlade.  My blog is devoted to a common sense revolution and I believe Gail started this decades ago with her common sense approach to money management.   She went on twitter urging her followers to adopt three resolutions:  once a week do something to make someone else's life better; don't spend money you haven't earned; and if you see an injustice, shout it loudly.  I think those are three very good resolutions.  I think I will be able to do the first two easily.  I would like to think I already make other's lives easier atleast once a week, but I will try to be more conscious of this.  Not spending money I haven't earned should be easy.  I am going on my first cruise later this month and I have already paid for it on credit so that will be going into last year's debt!!  The third one should be the easiest but I think it will be the most difficult.  When we really think of it, we witness injustice every day, perhaps not huge things, but everyday we hear a comment that intents to minimize a group of the basis of a factor of which they have no control such as gender, ethnicity, disability, etc.  It takes a warrior to speak out all the time.  It is also exhausting.  

The former reality tv star who is occupying the White House issued his first tweet of the new year on January 1.  Unfortunately, it was a negative tweet against Pakistan and we are seeing the results today with more violence and more protests.  Why couldn't he have tweeted something positive or nothing at all?  Just one day.  Something positive.  Your perspective determines your reality.  Why couldn't he start the New Year off looking for something good rather than going low and engage in the politics of hate.  Why?   I watched many pundits try to analyze this and provide an answer.  Why?  Trying to understand Trump is like trying to have a rational conversation with a two year old or trying to convince someone that is living with dementia that they are not orientated to time, place, and person.  It is a futile effort.  We can't rationally explain Trump.  The truth is that he is just bat shit crazy.  

Last night was a super moon and it was a spectacular sight.  There is so much that we can't control and the cycle of the moon is one of them.  It reminds us that there are powers greater than us.  To me, that is comforting and puts life into perspective.  The serenity prayer; accept the things you can not change, the courage to change the things you can, and the wisdom to know the difference.  A simple prayer but the most powerful resolution you can have for moving forward in a new year.

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