D-Empress

So, we made it through to 2009! As we herald the New Year, many are breathing a sigh of relief as the curtains go down on 2008 - and what a performance it was! In truth, it was a roller-coaster ride which tested us all to the core.

As we look back, was it ever as bad as the economic pundits said it would become? Granted, it was tough but the world hasn't come to an end. If anything, 2008 was a year where we had to dig deep and (re)discover aspects of our character that rarely see the light of day because life is so, well, great!

I remember the rush of 2008 (great) messages that flooded my inbox 12 months ago. Six months down the road, I recall the 2008 energy had evaporated. I asked the question then, as I do now, what will make this year greater than any other?

The doomsayers were having a field day, telling us to tighten our belts and calling us to revert to almost frugal living. They sent hoards of people spiralling in quicksand.

Collective meditation

Almost paralysed with fear, the world began a collective meditation through anxious sleepless nights of what-ifs. Baffled as to how we got to this space, as the established world order crumbled, it was all the more scary because we were ill prepared, and worse still, ill equipped.

If you think about it, we've been here before, in our lifetime and in our foreparents' lifetimes. But we survived! We came through to triumph because we were forced to learn new skills and rediscover our true selves.

Out of 2008 came the US President-elect Barack Obama. He speaks of the audacity of hope. How audacious are you when it comes to assessing how great 2008 really was?

Would you dare to see, even if for a minute, how resilient and resourceful you have been forced to become? In those 60 seconds, could you glimpse incredulous moments, the endless possibilities of a new dawn that you could create?

As we hurtle into 2009, ushering a new cast of actors brightly dressed in unfamiliar costumes, are you seated in the front row, gasping for air from scene to scene, or are you writing the script?

Whether we like it or not, we're all writing our own scripts, no matter the economic backdrop or the curtain call.

Looking across the oceans from Africa to the Caribbean, I see and hear a call to retrieve our creativity. In seeking to author our destiny, let's reclaim our deep-seated passions and take guidance from our soul.

It starts with acceptance of what is. For it is through the stillness of acceptance that we are able to release pent up angst which blurs our vision and literally incapacitates us. Take it head-on! Chalk up the dutty-tough experiences and capture the opportunities that turbulent times always offer.

I'm hearing it already now, 2009 is 2000 an' shine or 2000 an' mine. Whichever you choose, let your life script nurture seeds of possibility. It is ours for the making.

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