Say it ain’t so.
At the risk of sounding like a broken record, yet another difficult year has passed. It’s felt at times like our very humanity is broken.
As the door to 2025 is about to close and another opens to 2026, let’s protect ourselves and our perspective.
Casting our minds back to photographs of the past, life was sweeter and definitely slower.
While the river of time stops for no one. Let’s first throw it back and look at some of the good news from 2025:
- Ozone hole over the Arctic closes earlier than in years
- Ebola outbreak in the Congo officially declared overFrance introduces “Yes Means Yes” law
- Maldives introduces lifelong smoking ban for young people
- Australia signs first-ever treaty with Aboriginal peoples
- New satellite strengthens global climate warning systems
- Supreme Court blocks lawsuit against same-sex marriage,
- Brazil protects ten Indigenous territories,
- Ethiopia plants 30 billion trees in five years
And today?
Today, not everything is doom and gloom.
Far from it.
This little light of mine meets your light, and with a large dollop of consciously being a believer in kindness, and while still focusing and wondering why and how we got here, let’s fall up.
Are you ready?
We need love/besoin d’amour, otherwise, whose face am I?
We need to always recognize ourselves, our humanity, and our inextricable connections to each other.
It’s important to listen to the voice of the earth.
That doesn’t mean anger, frustration, overwhelm, and an ever-present aching heart and ever-present sadness aren’t there. But $uck being a princess – we don’t bow, we multiply.
The motivator isn’t a secret.
It’s ourselves.
Be the love.
When I’ve got the music in me, I’m more than happy to share if your heart beat to humanity is turned down so low you can’t hear it.
Mucking about in our current mess is dirty work, but we can’t let our hearts escape, and our feet slide into concrete. Even with a heavy foot, we can make progress.
So let’s go dancing before we’re all just dust in a baggie.
Let’s keep watch for butterflies because that’s life/c’est la vie.
When the leaves have turned not just autumnal colours but they’re now black leaves from a dark chapter, we have to shake things up. Bang a gong even.
Lift our hearts and heads to the sky and go stargazing.
If we are still and quiet and listen, we can hear echoes in the rain of brighter days ahead.
I know I still haven’t found what I’m looking for, but that’s the adventure.
Today is a good day to live.
To remember everlasting love.
And when you feel boxed in, like the very air is being sucked from your lungs, bust your window and break free.
The old dirt road of memory still serves, along with my side of midnight.
Come and dance so we can discover somebody that I used to know.
I surrender to dreams and to more of you.
When our sense of mon pays is mixed up and utterly territorial, we can and will make a change.
Je suis/I am utterly, honestly, gobsmackingly supportive of you and your precious work, your motivation to be a game-changer and change-maker.
And now, it’s almost time to turn the page to 2026. But not before you check out the playlist I made from all the italicized words above. Your playlist is below – written out, plus a made-for-you playlist on Spotify!
Take a look and listen.
- Say it ain’t so – Hitmakers
- Photograph- Ed Sheeran
- River – Bishop Briggs
- Honey! – The Pairs
- Throw it back – Breland, Keith Urban
- This little light of mine – Cast of Zoey’s Extraordinary
- Believer- Imagine Dragons
- Wondering why – The REd Clay Strays
- Falling up – Sheena Melwani
- Are you ready – Distant Cousins
- Besoin d’amour – France Gall
- Whose face am I – Mon Rovia
- Voice of the earth – Emma Stevens
- $uck being a princess – Esme Rose (we don’t bow, we multiply)
- The motivator – T. Rex
- Be the love – Emmanuel Jal
- I’ve got the music in me – Heart
- Dirty – Courtney Hadwin
- Heavy foot – Mon Rovia
- Let’s go Dancin’ – Kool and the Gang
- Dust in a baggie – Billy Strings
- Butterfly – Zac Brown Band
- C’est la vie – Claude
- Black leaves – Kirby
- Bang a gong – T. Rex
- Stargazing – Myles Smith
- Echoes in the Rain – Enya
- I still haven’t found what I’m looking for – Sara Jarosz
- Today is a good day to live – John T. Graham, Michael Stenmark
- Everlasting Lover – 49 Winchester
- Bust your windows – SZN4
- The old dirt road – Bo the Drifter
- My side of midnight – Hitmakers
- Come and dance – Yusuf/Cat Stevens
- Somebody that I used to know – SZN4
- I surrender – Eugene Masupo
- Dreams – Cranberries
- More of you – Sheena Melwani
- Mon pays – Gilles Vigneault
- Change – Nick Isham, Miranda
- Je suis – Freed Mushaga
Now go on and learn, laugh, and lead
Learn
- Surprise! Here’s your gift. Check out the playlist I made for you of all the italicized words.
Laugh
- Kindness is always possible. Give in to the urge.
Lead
- Make a playlist of your own for your wishes for yourself.
P.S.
I’ve done similar type playlists in previous years, which you can watch and read about here:
- Watch and read about reflections on 2024
- Watch and read about reflections on 2023
- Watch and read about reflections on 2022
- Watch and read about reflections on 2021
- Watch and read about reflections on 2020
- Watch and read about reflections on 2019
P.P.S.
For all you Learning and Development Roundtable members, as we’re taking a break from the Roundtable for the month of December, during that time I’ll be sending you my weekly tips on how to learn, laugh, and lead. Like this one!
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