I get irritated about media hype, especially around the holidays.
You’d think we are all perfectly happy people,
from white-bread, socially-appropriate, “intact” families,
with perfectly happy kids who are
continually thrilled-to-pieces about how wonderful things are!
My wishes for each new year
are for the rest of us
(which, in my opinion, is ALL of us).
TO GROUCHY PEOPLE
I wish you someone to complain to for a while,
followed by the realization that this doesn’t make you feel any better.
Then, I hope you’ll admit to someone who loves you
that you are lonely and sad, not angry –
and that you will accept their love
even if you think you don’t deserve it.
TO CONSTANTLY HAPPY PEOPLE
I wish you the ability to tell fantasy from reality,
and the ability to be satisfied
with the amount of real happiness you do have.
And I wish you the knowledge that
being unhappy some of the time
does not mean that something is wrong with you.
TO PEOPLE IN UNSAFE RELATIONSHIPS
I wish you the courage to do whatever it takes
to protect yourself
and any children who need your protection.
And I wish you a good relationship after that.
TO PEOPLE WHO MORALIZE
I wish you a year of focusing on
how much good FUN you can have!
Then I hope you will decide to care more about how you feel
than about how you compare to others.
TO EVERYONE IN A LOVE RELATIONSHIP
I wish you a year of remembering
that the main reason you are together is for touch
– warm cuddling and exciting sex.
TO EVERYONE NOT IN A LOVE RELATIONSHIP
I wish you so many good and kind friends
that your life is filled with hugs and many other kinds of “touch”
(like being noticed, and valued, and trusted, and laughed with, and…).
And if you want a relationship, I hope that next year
you will take the chances you need to take to get one.
And if you don’t want a relationship,
I hope you’ll know you don’t need one to have a good life.
TO PEOPLE WHO THINK THEY DON’T GET ANGRY
I wish you the courage to face how angry you really are sometimes
so you will be able to protect yourself from mistreatment
and get more of what you want each day.
And I wish you freedom from depression.
TO PEOPLE WHO ARE OFTEN BORED
I wish you the courage to notice and act on
every safe and playful impulse you have.
I also wish that you will make many decisions
based on the amount of safe excitement the activity will bring.
TO LONELY PEOPLE
I wish you the courage to say “Hello!” whenever you can
– and to stay, instead of running away, after you’ve said it.
I wish you the knowledge that
95% of the people you meet will treat you well.
And the knowledge that even when you do get mistreated
there will always be plenty of good people to be with afterward.
TO “FRAZZLED” PEOPLE
I wish you the ability to make your decisions about time and energy
based primarily on whether each activity is good for you.
I also wish you the ability to differentiate degrees of problems,
so you won’t think the world is falling apart
each time someone disappoints you or you make a mistake.
TO PEOPLE WHO SPEND THEIR LIVES BEING SCARED
I wish you the courage to leave any real people who scare you
and to get closer to all the safe people you know.
I also wish that you will
take the time to notice and absorb
how safe most people really are.
TO PEOPLE WHO SPEND THEIR LIVES PLEASING PEOPLE
I wish you the courage to put yourself first
and to accept that you are good enough the way you are.
TO PEOPLE WHO THINK THEY CAN’T CHANGE
I wish for you to look back a few years
and see how much you have changed
and for you to realize that change is constantly happening
and that you are in charge of almost all of it.
I WISH EACH OF YOU…
The courage to feel bad thoroughly when you need to,
and to decide wisely, afterward, what to do about it.
The self-love to feel good thoroughly when you can,
and to decide, afterward, how to get even more of it.
Good Health!
Good Friends!
And All The Love You Can Handle!
