What a Year to Be Here
This New Years all I heard was how terrible 2016 was. Now don’t get me wrong, I love me some David Bowie, and I am not too excited for the next four years with Trump, but I find it foolish and closed-minded when Buzzfeed refers to this past year as “trash.” A world war has not broken out, there was no plague, the world did not end, so why is 2016 receiving such hostility? Why should we dwell on what has gone wrong this past year, when instead we could celebrate the great achievements that took place throughout 2016. If you find yourself feeling down about this past year, I hope the events below will restore a little confidence and remind you of only a handful of 2016’s great accomplishments.
- Simone Biles took Rio by storm with four golds and one bronze medal. She was also called the greatest gymnast who ever lived.
- The Cubs won the world series after a 108 year old curse.
- Beyonce’s album, Lemonade, was released.
- Relations with Cuba mended after over 50 years.
- Harriet Tubman will be the new face of the twenty dollar bill and MLK Jr. will be the new face of the five dollar bill.
- Dozens of countries around the world are accepting syrian refugees.
- India planted 50 million trees in one day.
- Now over 6 million homes in California are powered by solar power.
- Leonardo DiCaprio won an oscar.
- The bank firm Sandler O’Neill & Partners is paying for the college tuition for the children of employees who passed away on 9/11.
I think it is misguided to label a whole year as “the worst ever”, especially when most of us reading this article are in the top 1% of people in terms of wealth, opportunities, freedom, education and safety. Any year spent with friends and family, safe, and in good health should be considered a good year. If recognizing positive events in 2016 is too optimistic for your taste and you really are set on defining the past year as “trash”, then why not redirect the energy you’re using to complain to instead make 2017 awesome! We all made it to 2017, why not be grateful?