Some people hyperactively celebrate the stroke of midnight on 31st December as though they are survivors of an apocalypse. All of a sudden, they have a newfound respect for life. And they start promising themselves and the world that they are going to turn their lives around because who knows if they will survive the next apocalypse? Because they are high on the madness that the celebration of New Year brings, everything seems possible and achievable. They are optimistic about leaving poverty behind. They are definitely going to reduce their friends’ list and retain only ‘real friends.’ They will find love-permanently. They are confident that they are going to evolve and so they make everyone suffer through their attention-seeking ‘New Year New Me’ social media posts. But then the madness wears off and they are faced with the harsh realization that a New Year does not really change anything. The universe will not grant them money just because new calendars have been printed. It will still take blood sweat and tears to fix the holes in their pockets. In their quest to be surrounded only by real friends, they are reminded that people are complex, imperfect and erratic. At the same time, their vain humannessmakes them continue to seek the attention of people that don’t like them. They find out that love is not something you can actively seek, find, and then hold captive. Love does the seeking, finding and holding captive. And it doesn’t work according to your timetable. And if/when love finally arrives, it is nothing like the movies advertised so you’re likely to treatit with total disregard. Their quest for evolution is countered by the fact that human beings are incapable of change. In the middle of the year, they will post selfies captioned: “I will be myself and I won’t change to please anyone.” The same people who applauded them for their desire to change will applaud them for the courage to be themselves. And then New Year’s Day comes around again and it’s lather rinse repeat. As a natural pessimist, I can’t help but wonder why these people don’t learn to treat New Year’s Day like any other day. I mean, on any given day we are lucky to be alive. Every single day is an apocalypse of sorts. People die, sometimes in the most shocking and mysterious ways. Why we wait for one day in a year to be grateful is beyond me. The New Year does not come with more hours in a day. Neither does it bring more luck. So at any given time of the year, you can plan to make the desired change in your life. At any given time of the year, you are capable of success and you are vulnerable to failure. The bottom line is that everybody just needs to relax; the New Year is nothing more than a change in the calendar. Everything is still pretty much the same.
