As the last day of 2014 commences we can all be forgiven for being a bit shell shocked by the events of a year that have terrified and mortified us. In this era of instant media we are constantly subjected to news that challenges our sense of humanity and the fabric of our social existence and feeling of community. So I thought Id share a couple of personal reflections on this last day of 2014. Reflections that have sustained me for more than 20 years while working with people on what is often the worst day of their lives. 2014 has been a fast and wild trip around the sun. For Ange and I personally and in our business we have had our best year yet. Thats not to say , however we are not alert to the fact its been a difficult year all round. As we reflect on 2014 we will recall with sadness and some measure of despair the terrorist attacks, the anger of extremists and religious zealots towards our way of life and our hard won freedom. We reflect upon the downed planes, murdered babies and the many, seemingly almost weekly tragedies we are exposed to in our media and we will remember this as the year my personal hero Robin Williams surrendered to his illness and took his own life. It would be easy to think 2014 was a terrible year. But 2014 was the year we marked the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. At the time this wall represented an enduring evil that seemed to be undefeatable. Now it is a tourist attraction. We saw a brave young women Malala Yousafzai share the Nobel Peace prize for defending the rights of children to receive an education and over 130 million babies were born this year. We dont yet know who they will grow to be so its to soon to tell what we may yield from these new citizens of earth. Wouldnt it we incredible, if the year we thought was so terrible, in time, turns out to be the year our next Mother Theresa, Gandhi, Princess Di or Nelson Mandela was born? My point is this, we can focus on the things that frighten and distress us. We can surrender to the awfulness of it all. Chances are something awful is just around the corner. Ive learnt its how we respond to the awful that counts even if all we have the power to do, is not surrender to it. New Years 1995 we were all reeling from the domestic terrorist attack on the Oklahoma state building that killed scores of innocent people including children in the day care centre on the ground floor. In 2001 we were still recovering from 9/11. If you were a child of the 60s you were told communists would over run you and murder you in your bed and you needed a bunker to be safe. Children of the 80s, you lived with the fear of a Cold War ending in nuclear holocaust. You never could have believed that wall in Berlin would fall. All that leads me to these 2 critical thoughts, ready? Here they are; Remember, ALL THE DARKNESS IN THE WORLD CANT HOLD BACK THE LIGHT OF THE SMALLEST FLAME.So if you are ending 2014 in despair and with heaviness in your heart for a world gone mad reflect on this one thing, ALL YOU NEED TO DO TO CHANGE THE WORLD IS ENSURE YOU NEVER LET THE WORLD CHANGE YOU. Happy New Year Everyone vimeo/8716214
Posted on: Tue, 30 Dec 2014 15:00:59 +0000
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