January 1st 2016.

I know this is a common sentence that we hear, but I truly cannot believe another year has passed us by, time truly does not wait for anyone and it just seems that our minutes, hours, days, weeks and months are just flying by, do you feel the same way?

Within a blink of an eye we have now entered another New Year.  I sit here wondering what 2016 will bring.  It was this time last year that my wife and I discussed making a change in our life, doing something different and making the most of a possible opportunity of being with family abroad and breaking away from the norm, breaking away from the ‘system’.

The Sabbatical we decided to take and spend in Canada is already 5 months old, it has been a truly unbelievable experience on so many levels so far and we have not regretted a single moment of this fantastic, life-shaping, life-changing experience that we feel utterly grateful for and remind ourselves how fortunate we are, we are sure that these experiences will be remembered fondly by our daughters for a long time to come.

With the commencement of 2016, it sort of coincides with the countdown of our sabbatical, very sad, but true.  As I sit here typing this after a very long evening of eating, and eating, and yet more eating with 40 members of the family, and now feeling quite exhausted, I hope and pray that the following can take place from this instance for as many deserving people on this blessed earth of ours:

• Health after illness
• Ease after hardship
• Happiness after sadness
• Fulfilment after loss
• Equality after discrimination
• Love after loneliness
• Peace after conflict
• Direction after confusion
• Unity after chaos

I truly believe that we are all droplets of water in the same sea, riding different waves, different stunning colours within the same majestic rainbow, individual and unique light rays from the same glorious sun, hopeful travellers on the same journey, incredibly intricate snowflakes from the same snowfall…

There is so much that we all have in common, there is so much that we desire, wish and hope for that is the same as the person beside us who desires, wishes and hopes for.  I fervently pray and I genuinely wish for a better world with more love, peace, humanity, understanding, equality and compassion for all of us.

A very happy and prosperous New Year and peace be upon you all for 2016.