Reporter's Reflections Archive

It is with some trepidation that I face 2006. In my life, 1976 wasn’t that great, 1986 was awful rough, and 1996 was just horrendous. I fear, perhaps, there is some kind of 10-year cycle rotating around in my life span. But that’s just silly--isn’t it?

I sometimes feel I’m standing on a cliff’s edge with all the things I cherish, looking down on a vast wilderness below. Around me are the small cleared openings of trails starting down the hillside, and beside me is a sign that says, “Below is the valley of 2006. Pick Your Path.”

 Well, from here, all the paths look the same--before vanishing into the wild, dark forest. But each one has a sign of its own.

The first path says, “This whole 10-year cycle thing is just crazy. Just pick this path and go. Don’t think so hard.” The second path says, “You’re doomed. The 10-year cycle is fate. It’s out of your control. Just prepare yourself for the worst and get it over with.” The third path says, “The 10-year cycle can be broken. If you find the hidden treasure along this path, you will be able to escape your destiny.” And so on.

 In previous decades, I don’t think I was aware of my behavior at all. Likely, I just picked some path before me, not even recognizing the signs. I did not know I was making choices. I was not planning. I was just wandering through the wilderness, from one year to the next.

 In a way, I think perhaps just realizing I was making choices is enough to break the cycle . . . if there is a cycle . . . not saying there is . . . but if there was . . . 

 Every year is a new year, just as every day is a new day. Every minute is a chance to stop, stand in the moment, and take time to actively evaluate and adjust. Examine the things that keep you from happiness and security. Every second is a pathway to the future, an opportunity to plan for better things.

 I don’t believe that life is already planned, and we simply go through the motions. I do believe there are tests and bumps in the road that we are meant to face, and no secret or charm can prevent it. But I believe it is my response to these challenges that determines the road before me. If I learned nothing from ’76, ’86 and ’96, I learned that.

 New Year’s resolutions are promises for change, but they are not plans. Plans are maps through the wilderness that stretches through the valley before us. We can simply pick any path before us, or arm ourselves with a sickle, water, and a compass. We are most likely to succeed and survive if we have a plan.

 I could face 2006 thinking, “It’s going to be a terrible year,” or, I could face the New Year with positive thoughts and plans for a brighter future. But with plans in place, and goals for the future, I am less likely to be derailed.

 Just as it is in personal lives, it is the same with organizations, businesses, communities and governments. We shall all face challenges this year. The county’s change in classification from a Class 10 to Class 9 county alone should bring interesting changes. New voting systems, a tightening economy, new federal legislation . . . We all must actively plan and persistently move towards our goals, or we might likely be derailed.

 Preconceived notions about available opportunities and economic data do not sentence us to failure. The rotating cycle of downfalls within our community only control us if we allow it. By viewing challenges as impossible barriers, by giving in to the obvious, by falling into the negativity, by focusing on stereotypes and statistics, we accept failure.

There is no written determination of doom for any of us. Happiness, success, improvement--all come from within.

 This year, don’t just make promises, make a plan. Plan to budget, spend time, communicate, work hard, work together. Plan for every level of your life, and then plan to bring all the paths together. Take a moment to map out the paths that will lead us all to health and happiness, and recognize the pitfalls, then find a way to navigate around them.