This Year, 2012
/So here we are, mere hours into 2012! Feels good, doesn’t it? We’ve overeaten, come up with some last minute resolutions, and expressed pity for Dick Clark. Bring on the new year.
Like the rest of the internet, I feel compelled to write some sort of obligatory New Year’s post, even though today is virtually the same as yesterday, save for a quick turn of the calendar. Still, there’s something comforting about our annual tabula rasa, and while we shouldn’t rely on a specific date to decide it’s time to improve ourselves, it does help to have a little Gregorian push.
I’m excited for the new year. I know for a fact it’s going to be a big one, apocalypse not withstanding. This year, I’m going to get a new iPhone. This year, I’m going to finish my thesis and officially earn my master’s degree. This year, I’m going to turn 25. Quarter-life, indeed.
Yet despite the few things I do know about 2012, there is so much more I don’t and can’t possibly know. I might find a new job. I might find a new place to live. I might meet a new girl. I might meet the girl. The Dave Matthews Band might break up. People I know might get married. Someone I love might die. I might die.
And since we have no idea about any of that, I think it’s best we work to make this year a great one. On the eve of 2012, I am reminding myself that this year, I will have control over nothing. I will be given things, and I will have things taken from me. The universe will continue to expand, and I’ll continue to be an infinitesimal speck along for the ride. I am reminding myself that the only thing I do have control over is my mind, and all I can do is prepare it to accept all the wonderful and terrible things 2012 has in store.
The comforting thing is that in 365 days, I will know myself better than I do now. So will you. Each day will teach us something new, and each day we’ll grow a little more and get a little better. Each day will bring us a little closer to who we truly are. It’s going to be great, and I’m excited.
I wish you an exceptional 2012, and thank you for reading. It means the world to me.
— Andrew