Wish you a happy and prosperous new year 2010 …
Agreed, it is a new year …
So what …?
End of the year 2009 …
So what …?
Time to make new resolutions …
So what …?
Every year on the night of Dec 31st, I remain in the same state of dilemma; this year also it is no exception. What is so new about the coming year that we must celebrate it? Most of this recent phenomenon like New Year, Valentines’ day, Mothers’ day, Fathers’ day and what not … are only created by various greeting card manufacturing companies who wanted one more occasion to sell their product. The start of the year on 1st of January also, is according to the Gregorian calendar and this is not universally accepted. There are calendars based on movement of moon like, Islamic hizri calendar or Hindu Vikrami or Shaka samvat, where the year starts on dates other than 1st of January. If 365 days are taken as criteria for a year, it can start and end on any day, why only 1st of January?
There will be others who may argue, it’s a time to make new resolutions. But, what happens to those resolutions in most of the cases? It is broken often the next day itself. Resolutions for a day are neither going to change our own life nor of others. People usually keep doing the similar stuff they used to do earlier, viz, the drunkard won’t quit drinking, corrupts won’t shun corruption off, criminals won’t become saints and so on. So, why this hoopla for a year ending …?
We judge a year good or bad by what it had in store for us. By that logic also, this year was much better than last year, i.e., 2008. While that year ruined many on the financial level due to economic downturn and recession, this year could bring smiles on many faces because of perceivable upswing in the economy. But why should we blame a year for such man-made disasters? Man made …? Yes, all the depreciation and recessions are man-made only …! (Well, this may be beginning of yet another debate, we can undertake some other time!) There was no reporting of large scale natural disaster either from anywhere on this earth. Neither large scale flood, nor famine, nor tsunami, nor quake either! (… Where was time for all these, we were busy already with our financial woes!) Thank God, we missed seeing in action, Osama and company also much of this year. This year Pakistan was quiet for most of the time, and so were other rogue states of North Korea and Iraq. Taliban from Afghanistan, warring tribes of Rwanda also did not get opportunity to grab headlines, barring a few occasional incidences. But the FARC and other Ideological as well as religious madcaps are yet to be tamed.
This year we saw the rise of Obama (Rhymes with Osama though)! And good on him …, he got the Nobel peace prize also! Manmohan Singh in India too did a great job … offcourse, if we leave the tangle created near the year-end by statements on Telangana to aside! Beggars had a brisk business globally as people turned to Gods and religious places more than ever! My next door neighbor also slept peacefully as I did not purchase any new gazette this year and so did yours, because you refrained this year from flirting with his dumb daughter! (Who said, “Love thy neighbor”? It’s always a relationship of envy!)
So, more or less this year passed quietly. You cannot have a more peaceful year. And so…, let me tell you my friends, as a natural balancing act, the coming year will be more turbulent! (What do you say Dooms day predictors?) Still, if you are going to wish me a happy and prosperous new year, I can reciprocate by wishing you good luck only. May God bless you, keep you and your family away from any disaster and … give you plenty of wealth and … health … to enjoy that (and …friends like me, to share those with you)! Amen!!
... Musings In Solitude! 