Where is the Happy New Year? - its under your nose...

New Years Greetings to all.

January is a funny time - all hung over but full of aspiration. To travel, to improve mentally, physically, to learn a language, to be kinder, to be less tolerant, to be in touch more with current affairs, to be less distracted, to get out more, to stay in more.

Some resolutions are far reaching, some last a few days...others we maintain.

Its a good marker - a new life opens, a blank page, canvas if you like.

A Happy New Year would be good - we wish it upon people and we receive such greetings ourself but how is it possible to have a happy new year?

Will it become happy when we have fulfilled our resolutions?

That may take sometime and who knows some of them may not be achieved or realized then what?

Wait for next year...

What about Happy New Week, Happy New Day, Happy New Hour, Happy New Moment?

The trend lately is not wanting to be happy - positive thinking doesn’t work and makes you more miserable!!  It can do - depends on how you approach it.

Happiness seems to depends on certain factors, accomplishment, prestige points.  When they are realized contentment will issue forth.

A friend said to me yesterday that they were trapped, with no freedom.

I thought of an analogy of an elephant stuck in mud.  How so...

Debts from University, bills to pay each month and commitments at work. Well...make the best of it is, one approach.

Trapped with the hope of churning out siblings who can accomplish much the same.

Its the time in between the lines, in between the sentences, in between the decisions which are often crucial.

The decision to study after school, the decision to get into debt, the decision to push to a career, mortgage, partner, children.  These things take place before you realize and then...trapped?

Perhaps; it depends on the view.  Freedom from one point of view is limited - however it depends how you look at the situation.  Someone with no such responsibilities may have more freedom, it depends how they look at their life and what they strive after.

I met a homeless man at a shelter in the Docklands over Christmas and he was happy with his lot - content. He didn’t strive for anything much. Some people pitied and prayer for him. His aspirations were limited and therefore so was his disappointment.

His Happy New Year - under his nose. Simple...