With many feeling nervous about how the new year will play out as Trump steps back into power, Dick Richards recommends ways to tackle 2025 with gratitude and self-esteem.
And just like that, the year has ended. What do we have to show for it? I ask myself that every year. 2024 was a strange one for me, and it felt like it went faster than previous years. We say that every year, though, don’t we? Maybe I should cut myself some slack. I laughed, I cried, I made new friends, and I moved to a new city. I think as long as you’ve experienced some personal growth and development, then it’s been a successful year.
If you’re like me, you can be very judgmental of yourself – I should have a better job, I should have lost last year’s Christmas weight, I’m not eating as well as I should, and I’m not at the gym as often as I should be. The common denominator in those criticisms is the word ‘should’. I probably need to reply to myself with, “Maybe you should shut the fuck up and enjoy being alive.” Because that’s it, isn’t it? As rubbish as life can be sometimes, especially with what’s happening in the world right now, we are so damn lucky to be alive.
Whenever I get sick, I realise how much I take for granted being healthy and wish more than ever I could be well. Then, when I’m healthy again, you’ll never hear me say, “Gosh, I’m grateful for not being sick.” The grass is always greener, and you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone. Don’t live your life in regret – that’s what I’m trying to say. Regret will freeze and paralyse you, and that is such a waste. You don’t deserve that.
It’s a new year, and with it comes more pressure. Will you meet the love of your life this year? Do you have any New Year’s resolutions? If you’re like me, you try to stay away from making any. I am constantly setting goals for myself to measure within a year, and it always feels like setting myself up to fail. I think as long as you’re making an effort to achieve those goals, then you’re bloody winning.
The most important question is, do you like yourself more this year? If the answer is yes, then ka pai – well done. If the answer is no, then I feel for you, and I’m sure you’re just being hard on yourself.
My hope for the new year is that we learn to love each other better in our queer community. We can be so judgmental of our rainbow peers, especially online, and that judgement often comes from within. Internalised homophobia is a pūriri (thorn) – it’s ugly and harmful – so maybe that could be something to work on next year.
Either way, it’s all about love. Forget all the ‘shoulds’ and ‘shouldn’ts’ and the pressures of resolutions. Move in love, and I truly believe it will come back to you.
