Usually, around this time of year, I write about resolutions, SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Based), or Meaningful ideas for the New Year.  Sometimes I discuss taking the “suffering” of the previous year and using it to discover meaning, or find achievement in the next year.

As I was thinking about what to share today – what might help make your 2021 more meaningful, and what might help you find achievement in 2020, I came across this bit of wisdom, and thought that if we all could do just a little more of this, well, as it says, our world, our lives, might be just little bit better.  I hope you have a happy, blessed, and meaningful New Year.  – Dan

Study the path of others to make your way easier and more abundant.

Lean toward the whispers of your own heart, discover the universal truth, and follow its dictates.

Know that the truth always leads to love and the perpetuation of peace. Its products are never bitterness and strife.

Clothe yourself in the work of love, in the revolutionary work of nonviolent resistance against evil. Anchor the eternity of love in your own soul and embed this planet with goodness.

Release the need to hate, to harbor division, and the enticement of revenge. Release all bitterness.

Hold only love, only peace in your heart, knowing that the battle of good to overcome evil is already won.

Choose confrontation wisely, but when it is your time don’t be afraid to stand up, speak up, and speak out against injustice.

And if you follow your truth down the road to peace and the affirmation of love, if you shine like a beacon for all to see, then the poetry of all the great dreamers and philosophers is yours to manifest in a nation, a world community, and a Beloved Community that is finally at peace with itself.

• John Lewis (1940–2020) – U.S. Representative & Civil Rights Leader