Hymn for the weekend

As the curtain falls on 2021

Hi guys!

It’s the last day of 2021 and what a ride we’ve had. I know I’ve not drafted a newsletter in a while (more on that later) and I almost didn't want to.

However, it just felt wrong to not sign off on this year without at least a word or two to you my readers who have been steadfast in your support through your readership and your words of motivation. For this I say a heartfelt “thank you”.

Recently, I was hanging out with friends and I asked them to review their year and assign a score between one and 10. I got a couple of interesting responses. When it got to my turn someone spoke up for me and said that my year was definitely a seven.

Seven?

I almost certainly didn't think so—at least on first thought. If anything, I was going to give my year an even lower score. But I reflected on it and later found myself in agreement with him. Seven, as it turns out, is a fair assessment.

Anyone who knows me well enough knows that I overthink and worry—a lot! As far as 2021 is concerned, what I thought of it and what eventually became of it were somewhat at a disparity.

Stephen♧ @Iuventini

- I will be a millionaire. - The world record in the marathon/sprint will be broken - A major scientific breakthrough will come from Africa, of all places. - It will be the year of graphene - I will find love in a hopeless place - Arsenal will become a force to reckon with

Man of Letters. @Letter_to_Jack

This is a time to drop your prophecy of 2021, let’s see who among us is an Oracle. I will go first: I don’t know yet, but there could be a war.

I resolved this year to become a rational optimist and if you follow my posts and indeed the general theme of my newsletters, they often hinge on hope in the midst of gloom. I thought that if I sent out enough good vibes out there, the universe perhaps would reciprocate the gesture. Reality however, is much more nuanced.

Sometimes, we are so encumbered by where we think we ought to be that we lose sight of how far we’ve come. Discounting the small wins and failing to, as the good old hymn admonishes, count one's blessings and name them one by one.

I left my job a few months back and between then and now I’ve been searching for opportunities. It hasn't quite happened yet though this is definitely not for a lack of effort. Naturally, the feeling of dissatisfaction about the unfavourable turn of events left me a bit downcast. Still, I wasn’t going to allow myself wallow in self-pity.

One of the things I promised to do with my free time was to reconnect with old friends and rekindle moribund relationships.

So my biggest personal win for me this year would be that I went out more and met people. I even found time to travel to my hometown for the holidays which was a welcome scenery that was physically and mentally reinvigorating for me. I listened to people more and learned greatly. I may have lost one or two friends, but I also gained more and repaired a couple of friendships that were in the cracks.

I’m thankful for friends and family who have stuck with me during my highs and lows. You know yourselves. The promotion of my newsletter within your circles along with the occasional calls, texts, visits and financial support are things I will never ever take for granted. My respect for you all remains unflinching. We will rock steady come 2022.

Another win I can point to would be in my worldview which I have already referenced, going from a cynical sceptic to a rational optimist—something which for me is all the more impressive given that we’re in one of the most uncertain times ever in history struggling with a pandemic that we’re coming to learn, is here for the long haul.

This newsletter counts as a major win for me too. It wasn't really something I mapped out a concrete plan for. I more or less just borrowed a leaf from Nike and just did it. The feedback I regularly get from you guys warms my heart and I fall back to them on days when the going gets very rough. So yes, I’m thrilled to count you as part of my wins for 2021.

Sometime in November I went on a hiatus from writing. The main reason for this was that I was undergoing some lessons which consumed most of my time. I’m afraid this would only intensify in the coming year which would mean that my newsletter may become more sporadic. But I’ll never give up writing completely. Whenever I can find the time to, I'll share my thoughts on the pertinent matters of the day affecting the country.

I’m also a little excited about the football team I support, Arsenal. We’ve been having a good run and finished the year on a strong note. While there’s still much work ahead, I’m really confident that we would finish in the top four after such a long time.

I know some of you reading this are sneering but we will come back to this in May by which time either you or me will be laughing. My money’s on me.

I’m leaving you with a photo of me typing. No, that’s not where I wrote this newsletter and no, I wasn't alone. If you look closely though, you can see me smiling and I hope that 2022 gives everyone reading this many reasons to smile.

Here’s me wishing you a happy new year with an assurance that no matter how disjointed things may be right now, everything is going to be alright.

Ciao!

P.S: If I owe you money please let me know before the year runs out so I can repay you. Similarly if you owe me money, or you think you owe me money, please pay up so the books can be balanced :-)