See Hope Dawning Deep Within You This New Year

You might find it strange, but one of the oldest things in life is a New Year. Year changes every year. Every year comes a New Year. Every New Year, we make some promises to ourselves. Every New Year, we make New Year resolutions. Every New Year, we hope to spark a new positive change.

For a moment, do you remember what were your New Year resolutions last New Year? I do not say that all the people out there do not stick to and fulfil their New Year resolutions. But, most often than not, New Year resolutions lose their sheen and energy to get submerged into the flow of time. This is the nature of life. It is like a river. It flows and flows, unconscious of its surroundings, uninhibited by many obstacles it faces on the way. Renowned physicist Albert Einstein put it beautifully and succinctly when he said, “Life is like riding a bicycle. In order to keep your balance, you must keep moving”. And balance one does keep as life never stops.

It is not that people do not take their resolutions seriously. It is not that they are not sincere in taking their resolutions to their logical ends. The truth is that the resolutions can get waylaid despite their best intentions. While making resolutions in January 2020, did they know that, within a few months, a tiny, unsolicited, hitherto unknown virus would come from nowhere and throw the life of each and every individual in such an existential crisis that any New Year resolution would be rendered meaningless? How many of them knew at the beginning of January 2022 that within a few months, a
war would be knocking at the doors of the world to throw almost everything in a turmoil and renewed uncertainty? All of us at individual level always find ourselves surrounded by new and unexpected situations that make it necessary for us to adjust accordingly.

So, New Year resolutions are not sacrosanct. What is, however, sacrosanct is looking forward and finding a new meaning of life at every turn of the year. As Chinmoy Kumar Ghosh (1931-2007), better known as Sri Chinmoy, an Indian spiritual leader, who taught meditation in the West after moving to New York City in 1964, said: “When the New Year dawns, we have to make ourselves conscious of the fact that we have to transcend ourselves this year. We have to go beyond our present capacity, beyond our present achievement. God always wants us to move ahead; He does not want us to look back. We know that while a runner is running fast, if he looks back, he will stumble. Similarly, if we are constantly looking behind at the year that we are leaving aside, we will think of our sorrow, misery, frustration, failure and so forth. But if we look forward, we will see hope dawning deep within us.”

That is the key—we must see hope dawning deep within us. Hope is a powerful tool that serves us as guiding light
for our success. It helps us stay strong and determined to move forward in life. With hope, we go beyond our
present capacity, beyond our present achievement. To rekindle hope within yourself, here are five simple rules that you
must follow. First, value your strengths and accomplishments. Keep reminding yourself that you are a strong,
capable individual who deserves the very best in life. Second, engage in activities that make you happy. It could
be anything. Find out what pleases you and make it special for yourself. Third, practice gratitude. You are blessed with
many beautiful things. Be grateful for them. Be grateful for the simplest things that come your way. Be grateful for who and what you are. Fourth, take care of your health and well-being. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle is the key to your success. Last but not least, evaluate your situation and be willing to change. A good way to move forward with a rewarding life is to (i) assess your current situation with an honesty of purpose; (ii) realistically determine where you would like to be in times to come; and (iii) map out how you ideally plan to get there. Making roadmap for future comes with its own inherent energy.

So, do not start your day with the broken pieces of yesterday. Every day is a fresh start. Every morning we wake up is the first day of our new life.

With these words, wishing you a very happy New Year, with a happy new day, everyday of the year, as you follow your dreams, one day at a time, as the Sun rises each day.

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