New Year Resolution

Michael arrives at the bar called “Franky’s” to meet his friends so they can ring in the new year on late night December 31st. As he makes it inside to join his friends he goes to the bar which is packed with people and begins to reflect on this last year of his life.

“I went through a lot this year.” Michael began in thought. “Someone who I thought loved me abandoned me and walked off into the sunset. I thought we were gonna be close forever, but they left me when they saw opportunity elsewhere that had more to offer. It’s not all their fault, I definitely share the blame. It’s not like I didn’t see the signs telling me to run away from trouble ahead of time, I just kept ignoring them. Why was I so foolish why didn’t I listen to reason?”

“What makes it all so much worse is I fell into a deep depression. I fell into an excessive world of drinking and drugs, among other things. In doing so I wasted a lot of valuable time. I wasn’t practicing my passions, I wasn’t trying to build my career up into what I had always dreamed. I was just chasing ghost from a past that no longer existed. Maybe it never existed. Maybe I was just caught up in a fantasy of a fake world that I was looking at while wearing rose colored glasses.”

“By the time I realized the grave mistake I had made it was too late. The train of life had come and gone and the opportunities that could have been had now come and gone. So then I was left with my fate. The elders around me tell me that all is not lost and that God will give me a second chance, for the millionth time. I honestly don’t know how much I believe that.”

“I know God can do anything, but I also know that I’ve made so many bad choices that I don’t deserve another chance. As much as I hate it I’m almost fine with the seeming failure that awaits me. It’s not like I don’t deserve it.” Michael’s train of thought is suddenly interrupted when his friends Ashley and Jordyn, Ally and Tajgi walk in to the bar. “What’s up brother!” Jordyn says with a warm greeting. “What’s up crew.” Michael responds. “Yo you ready tobusher in this new year?” Tajgi asked with excitement. “I know I am.” Ally responded while hugging Michael. “It’s gonna be a great year for us all.” Ashley added while putting her arm around Michael.

It was in this moment that Michael started to realize something. He began to realize that though a lot of misfortune took place this year there were still a lot great times. Though he lost several people he loved, there were also people who stayed in his life that did not abandon him and new people arrived who taught him lessons about loving people he was grateful to have learned. All of these people were responsible for the best of times he had this year and when he thought about it realized that these good times vastly outweighed the bad ones.

It was in this moment of realization that Michael decided to make a New Year’s resolution. “Yes I lost people this year and had some bad times, but I also gained some amazing people this year and we shared too many great times that will live in my heart forever. I now know the mindset I wanna walk into this next year with. I’m gonna let go of the past and stop letting it hinder me from the future. I’m gonna focus on the people around me who love me dearly, stayed by my side and I’m gonna be more appreciative of them by cherishing every moment we have together. I’m believing and declaring that I will be better in this new year.”

As the packed bar was hyper as the ball drop was approaching, Michael stood in the middle of the crowd with his four best friends with their arms around him knowing he was loved, cared for and that a beautiful future lay just up ahead.