WE'VE GOT THIS!

A person always wonders what the future holds as the final minutes of one year steadily tick forward into the first minutes of the next.  We think about the year that has been and what we hope for as the next one unfolds, and being a superstitious bunch, we look for signs to calm our reservations with the unknown.  It's always scary to step into something we can't predict.

This past year has been a doozey, hasn't it?  News broadcasts are a never ending flow of stories that leave us at the very least unsettled, and at worst, deeply depressed.  How can human beings think that blowing up other human beings serves any purpose at all?  How can bombing whole cities into rubble and dust profit any kind of agenda?  What is the point of declaring yourself the victor when there is nothing left to claim, and no people to rule? 

Disturbingly I find myself becoming immune to the stories of terrorism attacks around the world.  It's not a question of was there another one, but where did it happen today, with minor points of interest added like how many bombers there were, how many of them got away, and how many innocent shoppers or concert goers died this time.  It has started sounding like a sports cast explaining who the opposing teams are, what plays were used, and what was the final score.  What should shock us just ends up sounding like a bunch of statistics.  I have to stop and remind myself every once in a while those numbers had mothers and fathers who loved them, children who depended on them, friends who were probably there and couldn't save them.

And no one will ever be able to think of 2016 without the nightmare of the USA presidential election results.  If there ever was a reason to dread this next four years, it's the thought of who is in charge at the White House.  My hope is that we manage to live through it; the world has never been in less trust-worthy hands.

But that is the big picture; something I can do nothing about.  If I let myself worry about the world affairs I will certainly go crazy, so I focus on just my own little place on the map and my own little life.  When the clock ticked into 2017 we were up at the neighbour's place toasting the New Year with loads of food, cups of cheer, and a box of fireworks set off amid snowflakes fluttering down around us.  A half hour later we were on our way home, happy and tired.  The roads hadn't been in great shape on our trip to the party and they had got worse.  We ended up getting stuck a mile from home in the middle of the road because the drifts were so deep and went on for so long. 

The obvious thought that this was a bad omen for the new year came to mind as we put on the extra hats, mitts, and scarves we had in the back seat, put the cell phone on flashlight mode and headed home, but that mile's worth of exercise gave me lots of time to think - yes getting stuck wasn't a good thing, but since we were prepared and confident in our abilities, it wasn't a serious obstacle.

The walk was brisk, but pretty, the tractor started right up even though it hadn't been plugged in, and we were changed into work clothes and headed back to the car in less that a half hour.  We had the tools to dig out and Glen used the snow blower on the tractor to clear the whole road and our driveway before we called it a day.  For me it wasn't about the misfortune of getting stuck, but that we were capable of overcoming the trouble all on our own.

Let's hope we can say the same thing about world affairs and American politics this time next year.