As we head into 2017, we are presented with a new opportunity to influence our destiny, one that is determined by the choices we make and how we manage the circumstances with which we are given. Despite all that has taken place in 2016, my wish for all of you is to make your choices, live with them and learn from them. Consider the following, not as resolutions, but as reflections and a call to action for the New Year. Hopefully they will help us all in defining ourselves and the lives of the many others we will touch in the coming year:
1. Always be there for your fellow beings, your family and your friends
2. Do not spare politeness to others. Never let kindness be held hostage by pretenders
3. Make your own decisions based on facts
4. No matter how bad things get, do not despair
5. Hang on to hope, as brightness will eventually appear
6. If you are going to fail, fail going forward
7. Never think that there are no crocodiles because the water is calm
8. Don’t wait for the last judgment. It takes place everyday
9. Remember that no one in the world needs a mink coat except a mink
10. Party like its 1999! Remember to be safe and responsible and have a very HAPPY 2017!
Dr. Richard Evans for State House 