After all it is just the next day on the calendar.

There is no special termination point for the year that has been, in this case 2020, where we can drop off our woes and pick up a bag of goodness for the year ahead.

But yet we have always looked to a new year as a turning point - especially when the year that has just passed has been significantly awful.

I hope better times ahead is the case, having recently turned the page on the calendar to 2021, but I won't hold my breath. I am a realist.

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After all we are still under the cloud of a global pandemic, higher unemployment and ongoing economic challenges caused by the uncertainty of the pandemic and trade restrictions with China.

However, what we can do is take responsibility for our own personal attitude to the many challenges that may present themselves in 2021.

I'm not one to make New Year's resolutions - mainly because I always break them.

But I have made a resolution for 2021 - or at least a promise to myself.

That is to accept the things I cannot change, find the courage to change the things I can, and find the wisdom to know the difference.

I also resolve to find the joy in each day and value the people who share that joy with me.

In fact, I have resorted to a popular habit of the past that can pave the way for positive reflection and appreciation.

I have bought myself a little diary and I have been writing a positive experience in it each day to keep me on this positive track.

Sometimes we gloss over those positives amid the chaos that is life. We also tend to give negatives situations too much attention.

Consciously acknowledging the good things that happen each day in even the simplest way - such as a diary entry - can have an impact on our attitude and outlook.

When we do this, turning the page on the calendar can be far more uplifting and and we can be more appreciative of the good things in our life.

I wish for a better 2021 for all, but above all I hope you too, can find a level of calm and joy regardless of what the year brings.

Stay safe and optimistic

- Jackie Meyers

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