Julia Samuel reflects on the global challenges of 2024 and encourages readers to find joy and hope amidst the difficulties. She shares her personal experience with a debilitating illness and emphasizes the power of hope to overcome adversity.
. . . . . . . . . .As a new year beckons, it is human nature to plan and predict the future – to try to give ourselves a sense of security. Since the past always informs the present, it is understandable that, as we review 2024, we might look to 2025 with dread. For, globally, it has been quite a cocktail of catastrophe. The horrors of wars in the Middle East and Ukraine. Destruction wrought by typhoons and hurricanes. Fear engendered by political uncertainty here, in Europe and the US.
How often do we hear people glumly say, ‘The world isn’t a very nice place at the moment’? But the truth is that we have more influence over our mood than we realise. True, we cannot change the events that unfold on our screens 24/7 but we can choose to lead our own lives with vibrancy, curiosity and even joy. This doesn’t mean a Pollyanna-ish denial of the news. We simply need to acknowledge the distress of what happens, let those sensations flow through us, and name them. Indeed, there’s a saying, ‘To name is to tame’, meaning that putting feelings into words can reduce the force of unpleasant emotions. What’s more, we can harness hope – that special alchemy that has the power to turn life around. For hope is not just a feeling, it can make things happen. Let me use myself as an example. We cannot change the events that unfold on our screens 24/7 but we can choose to lead our own lives with vibrancy, curiosity and even joy, writes JULIA SAMUEL Last February, I fell while on a ski holiday. My shoulder shattered and the trauma triggered a virus, Ramsay Hunt syndrome (facial palsy). The psychological pain was hard, but I also knew I was fortunate Last February, I fell while on a ski holiday. My shoulder shattered and the trauma triggered a virus, Ramsay Hunt syndrome (facial palsy), from which I have not fully recovered. Over the weeks and months, the physical pain was hard, but the psychological pain was much harder when I saw my distorted face in the mirro
Hope Resilience Mental Health Happiness Optimism
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