Circle Game

And the seasons go ’round and ’round

And the painted ponies go up and down

We’re captive on a carousel of time

…

And go ’round and ’round and ’round in a circle game

—Joni Mitchell

This is the time of year to reflect on what has happened. What, if anything, have I learned from my experiences this year?

• Life can be very painful. Even the good times can hurt.
• Things never go like you want them to. Even things you do to avoid hurting others (or, at least, minimize the damage), can end up hurting them more.
• It’s better to get things out in the open. If something disturbs the harmony of the house, delaying the disturbance does not make it go away. Cleanse the wound quickly before it festers.

Of course, I already knew all of these things. So that brings up my final ovservation:

• Even though you know something, your mind can still trick you into repeating the mistake through optimism. I knew that, too.

So, what would I change about the last year? Not really anything. I have always believed that even the icky parts of life shape who we are. We need pain to appreciate its absence. We need joy to survive the pain. The Wheel of Fortune is the most beautiful card in the deck. I still try to cherish all of my experiences—even those that hurt.

Resolutions

New Year’s resolutions are promise made to yourself, usually without the wherewithal or sometimes even the intention of keeping them. Here are mine for the upcoming year:

• To do my best to be happy and help others be happy
• To achieve a balance between work and life
• To work on making a charitable reaction to any stimulus my first one

These were written by columnist Lynn Ashby. I like them:

• In the coming year I shall never read any newspaper story that contains the names Paris Hilton, Britney Spears, or Karl Rove unless followed by “was indicted.”
• Not to watch a TV channel that only tells me what I want to hear, that whatever the problem, it is someone else’s fault. I must think outside the Fox. (I wish everyone would try this one.)