Over the last couple of days I've caught a lot of those "top stories of the year" type of programs. Yep...the reviews are in...and the news is not good. The financial industry, the housing market, the automakers, the nation's retailers and the average Joe would agree that the economy is in the tanker. The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan continue, while other pockets of chaos keep popping up daily in places like Gaza, India....and in our own cities, suburbs and in some households.
With all this bad news, however, I still feel a strong sense of hope. Maybe I'm crazy, but I think a lot of good can come from hard times. An interesting example of this was a story I just heard on the news the other day. CNN reported that divorce rates are falling in a big way. First of all, couples are finding paying 2 attorneys is darn expensive. Secondly, the housing market is so bad, they can't sell their homes, or their homes' value has dropped below what they owe, so that after selling and splitting assets both parties will have nothing. Finally, the child support or alimony one would have to pay, added to the expense of 2 households has put divorce plans on hold. One couple interviewed decided to just stick together, and low and behold, they are working through their issues and are happy they stayed together.
Those of us who grew up with parents or grandparents who lived through the depression have heard the stories of sacrifice. Admit it, maybe you rolled your eyes more than once as you heard again and again how "you kids today don't know how good you have it, because back in my day..." Yeah, times were tough back then, we know. But do we? The fact is, the lessons they learned and the advice so many of us passed on now seems like wisdom from the Dali Lama. Maybe its time we head back up the mountain and heed some of that sage advice now.
As I think of the way my Dad and Mom ran their household, and their parents before them ran theirs, I think that if we ran our family finances, our businesses, heck even our government this way, maybe we can turn things around. And now that we've come so close to hitting rock bottom, maybe we will.
I hold out hope that in 2009 we can pay down our debt, not buy it if we can't pay for it, start saving, and learn the difference between wants and needs and teach that to our children.
I hold out hope, that under the leadership of our new president, we will be inspired to work together, on both sides of the aisle politically, and that tolerance among the races, the sexes, the creeds and classes develops more quickly as the realization that we are all in this together sinks in.
I hold out hope that the lessons learned through our watching the results of greed and irresponsibility become conduits for change in the world, in our country and in our homes.
I hold out hope that these lessons will sink in sooner than than later, and the quick, decisive action on the part of our government leaders will turn things around a lot more quickly than those "experts" predict. Hey--it could happen! Heck, what do they know? This time last year, the supposed "experts" sure didn't predict this mess!
I hold out hope that somehow, some way, this is the year we make progress in the areas of education and health care.
And I hold out hope for peace...in our world....in our country...in our neighborhoods and in our families.
We are the greatest nation in the world because of our diversity. There is no one set of rules that will fit us all, and it is through compromise, acceptance, and tolerance that we will come out of this together, and stronger.
Here's hoping for a great 2009...for all of us.
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