Generally, I would describe myself as a realist (some might say pessimist, but I would argue against) but when it comes to celebrating the beginning of a brand- new year, I am one of those upbeat annoying people who forces everyone to stay up till midnight to clink with champagne and share highlights and goals. There is just something so refreshing about New Years. I can’t help but feel optimistic about a blank slate. Some of you might remember Rayna, the main character in Silver Heights, feeling similar when reflecting on New Year’s Eve:.
Rayna loved New Year’s Eve. She liked the symbolism of the end of something turning into the beginning of something else. She always felt like she could really start fresh. Shake off her old self and begin again. The year ahead seemed to stretch in front of her with mysterious possibilities. Her optimism admittedly would fade after a couple of days when the disappointing realization sunk in that, although the number at the end of the date had changed, nothing else really had. Still, there was something about tonight. Something that made Rayna sure this year just might be different than the rest..
One of my favourite quotes that I often tell myself comes from L.M. Montgomery and her beloved novel, Anne of Green Gables. “Isn’t it nice to think that tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it yet?”.
When my list of regrets, social anxiety moments, worries and stresses weigh me down I like to remember this quote. It fills me with the same hope that celebrating New Year’s does. No matter what today brings, we have a blank slate waiting for us tomorrow. It is never too late to start something, to finish something, to become something better or find the peace we have been searching for.