While most of us are quite pleased that 2020 is finally over – it was a rough year – and all of us are looking forward to the promise of new opportunities in 2021, we need to view this fresh year with both a degree of circumspection, as well as a heart filled with hope….
Pressure gets to everyone from time to time, often resulting in behaviour that is not aligned to one’s “normal”, known character or disposition. This behaviour irregularity causes confusion in the minds of those closest to you, leaving them frustrated and even upset. This happened to me recently when the family were involved in decorating the…
Persistent insecurity has marked this year 2020 – our lives and livelihoods have been threatened by the COVID-19 pandemic. After many months of extreme uncertainty, many people are experiencing waves of anxiety and fear – even depression for some. Psychologists refer to these feelings of fear and persistent anxiety as an emotional tsunami – being…
“Today is one of those days when I could restore myself to the default factory settings” (Anon) It is easy to feel negative, anxious and disgruntled, especially at a time when worldwide the COVID-19 virus is on the rampage again. The pandemic has pulled the rug out from under our feet, disrupted life as we…
“The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones” Confucius When faced with the pressing problems of the day, like pandemics, poverty, hunger, a damaged environment, etc., it is easy to fall prey to feelings of helplessness and be overwhelmed by the seeming insignificance of one’s own contribution to finding solutions. Our…
“You can’t beat the smell of fresh ambition in the morning” (ANON) Some levels of ambition are needed for achievement – the desire or will to succeed at something or to realise a set goal. Channelled correctly, ambition can bring great results. Ambition often gets a bad reputation, however, where the very characteristic that encourages…
We all have to deal with rejection in some form or other and probably many times during the span of our respective lives. In fact, in my case, any period of unconditional love and appreciation bestowed upon me was short-lived unfortunately – I just experienced this “being adored because I existed” outpouring of love and…
“I wish it need not have happened in my time,” said Frodo. ”So do I,” said Gandalf, “and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us” (J R R Tolkien)…
In the ongoing battle for wholeness and wellness, especially where the focus has shifted during this COVID-19 pandemic to physical protection, immune defence systems and overcoming possible financial ruin, some key emotional and psychological factors may be missed in the wellness puzzle, viz.: mental health being overlooked as a result of the current focus on…
Trillions of dollars have been allocated worldwide to fight the COVID-19 pandemic and rightly so, as we are dealing with a pervasive threat. The money is being spent on personal protective equipment, medical supplies, new hospitals and quarantine centres, screening and testing projects, the development of a vaccine, information dissemination and so on. Very few…
“We must accept finite disappointment, but we must never lose infinite hope” (Martin Luther King) Have you ever known a time more desperate than what we are facing currently? We are in the midst of a devastating pandemic in the world. Many of our financial institutions are on the brink of collapse. Businesses and large…
The COVID-19 virus is presenting huge challenges for our world, with most countries reporting infections and some deaths, and some countries reporting many thousands of lives that have been lost. These are the statistics of a pandemic – an acceleration of infections worldwide, community transmission and the resultant deaths of many precious lives. None of…
