Happy New Year!

Another year reached its end. Another year dominated by special regulations due to the Covid19 pandemic. Although some scientists and politicians declare the pandemic for being over, I don’t think so. IMHO the virus stays and is part of our common life now. Vaccinations are still necessary, especially for kids.

Fortunately, the rate of serious infections is quite low, at least in western countries as well as in those countries willing to cooperate with them. But, nevertheless, everyone is due to take care of their own health by protecting themselves from getting infected. Thus, face masks will probably remain just the way it is common in a couple of Asian countries for years already, and facemasks are even produced by major fashion labels.

So, I’m wishing you the very best for 2023: health and wealth. Health for being able to enjoy life with your family and friends and wealth for heaving the necessary funds either by earning them from your job or from your pension fund in case you’ve already retired.

I selected this image from my archive taken a couple of years ago. Before sunrise, I was already hidden in a hide waiting for the sunlight to wake up the cranes standing in the shallow water in front of me about a hundred meters away. Cranes are considered of being birds of happiness and luck. Me, that morning definitely brought happiness to me. Many of the birds started flying straight in my direction, just like the ones in the image above.

May they also bring some luck for you for the new year.

Take care!

Happy New Year

When standing on the beach and watching the waves rolling in you can every now and then find things. In the surf, you can find stones, shells, algae or other sea plants, and even human waste. At the same time, the surf washes away footprints or any other mark in the sand. Heavier waves are able to form the beach and even the coastline anew. This happens usually during the winter storms.

Tomorrow, a new year is starting. A new year comes to us just like the waves on the ocean. Some waves are small, others are bigger and some even might be shaking the foundations of life. You won’t know in advance what the year will bring to your life. You also won’t know in advance, what it will take from you. But, you have to take it and you have to cope with the changes.

The last year and the year before were such life-changing times. While 2020 had severe menaces for our health, we looked a bit more positive on 2021 by the end of last year, because several vaccinations were already available. Now, that another year passed by, we see more and more people getting tired of the restrictions we’re still faced with each day. Although vacations are the easiest and least intrusive treatments, too many people are still denying the existence of the virus, or the power of the impact of the infection (i.e. long-covid and post-covid-syndromes) besides the possible life-threatening outcome of an infection.

I got my vacation in summer and the booster two weeks ago. Up to now, I didn’t get infected by the SARS-CoV-2 virus and I’m willing to do anything to keep this status for the future.

But, in the meantime, it’s much more than not going to a theater, cinema, restaurant, or any other public event. It also changed the relationship and habits between humans. Distance (not only looking at the space between individual human beings), no hugging, no kissing, not meeting friends and family, wearing masks. All this helps cool down relationships. Our societies are changing. Our habits are changing. But, is suffering in an ER or laying in a cemetery a nice and desirable alternative? Centuries ago, people were suffering from pests, pox, and other diseases which are not relevant anymore because scientists were able to find vaccinations and treatments to extinct them. Now it’s our task to cope with Covid and defeat this virus and its mutations. We already reached a very good state. Let’s motivate the hesitating ones to help for the final victory so that we can start gaining our lives back completely. The longer it lasts, the harder it will be to come back to ‘normal’. But, going back to ‘normal’ too early is too dangerous for mankind. This virus has the potential to dramatically reduce the world population because it does not make any differences between people.

Nevertheless, I wish you a happy new year, and may a gentle warm wind strengthen your back and dry up the tears remaining from the past year.

 

Take care!

Monochrome Monday 5-36 – Happy new Year!

We’re standing right in front of a jump: 2018 will be 2019, soon.

Here in Germany, some people call the days between Christmas and New Years day the “days between the years” or short “between the years”.

Don’t get confused, the year starts on January 1st and ends at December 31st here, too. But, many businesses (primarily smaller ones) close their doors these days for a short vacation to recuperate from the very stressful Advent time (the 4 weeks before Christmas). Also, big businesses encourage their employees to take these days off.

In this context, you can understand these days as being a bridge between the years.

Another custom here is, making resolutions for the new year: stop smoking, stop drinking alcohol, more sports, living a more active life, finding a new job and so on. I guess, you got the idea. Also, you make a wish for your neighbors, friend and colleagues. These wishes usually include health and personal success (without going into detail).

So, I wish you a Happy New Year. And, I thank you for all of your support!

A new year is a bit like an empty sheet of paper. No wrinkles, no stains and nothing written or drawn on it. So, it’s up to us, to go forwards and leave some marks on the paper, to make sure, we’re alive and create some memories.

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face;
the rains fall soft upon your fields
and until we meet again,
may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

(traditional gaelic blessing)

 

Happy New Year

for everyone!

Many people use the beginning of a new year to negotiate some resolutions with themselves. Do you or did you?

Some want to stop smoking, others want to lose weight, learn another language, do more sports or spend more time
with the kids / family.

I usually don’t make such resolutions. I don’t need such an event for making plans for change. But for many people such New Year Resolutions are very helpful, although many of them fail. Why aren’t they successful? Often the resolutions are phrases up in a bad shape for being a resolution.

But what should one do, to make a resolution work? In case, you have a plan for a resolution, write it down, regardless when you get the idea. But, make it a goal!
For making a plan be a goal, you have to
– write it down
– keep a realistic timeline
– express it proof-able
– make a (realistic) plan, how you could reach the goal
– make a review appointment after half the time for adjustment purposes
– make another review appointment at the final date for proofing the goal

Here’s an example:
Say, you want to lose some weight. So, you shouldn’t say “I want to loose weight”. Instead you have to say “My goal is to lose 10 kg until easter”.  This is an example. You could certainly plan to lose 20 kg until the 1st of June. But keep it realistic. In case you have difficulties to estimate, what is realistic and what is too much, ask your friends, doctor or another advisor on that specific subject. Than write it down! Next write down the steps you want to execute to reach the goal. You could i.e. make appointments with yourself for a certain amount of time on certain times (i.e. every Monday and every Thursday at 6 p.m. go jogging for an hour) and record your status every month. Stay with your plan. Maybe you have to adjust some steps after some time. But try hard to stay on the line. At easter you could easily stop on your balance board to check your current weight and compare it to you starting weight. This it proofing your goal. Did you pass or did you fail? In case, you failed, how far away are you from your goal? What do you do now? Extend the time? Be satisfied by the reached result? Did you learn something during the time that is useful for the future? Write it down!

If you want to, you can use the space below to write about your resolutions. Do you make some, why and maybe which.

A new year is just like an empty sheet of paper. And it’s on you, what you’ll write on it. And next you can have a look back, and see what you have reached.

I assemble a book each year in December. A book containing the best photographs of that last year as an essence. Only about 40 – 60 photos out of 10,000.  My personal year in photographs. It’s an interesting way for a review.

Happy new year!

Happy new year