So it’s the first day of 2007, and I’m smiling from ear to ear because the year is off to a great start. I had a fantastic New Year’s Eve and wonderful New Year’s Day, and I’m looking forward to a year of great wonder and adventure. So in order to kick off 2007 in the right way, here are a few snippets of wisdom that were passed on to me in the past year.

The first comes from a poem by Shane Koyczan called Apology…

Doubt is about as useful as a fire escape when you’re trying to dodge a tidal wave. When you’ve got no time to save anybody but yourself, you better believe that you’re worth it.

This next one was a text message that my friend Tina sent me last year…

Life is tiring. For sure. But it’s just a dream. ANd it’s love that makes everything worthwhile. You’re a lover. Keep loving. Keep living.

Tina also reminded me of this excellent quote that I first heard in The Matrix Revolutions…

Agent Smith:
Why, Mr. Anderson, why? Why, why do you do it? Why, why get up? Why keep fighting? Do you believe you’re fighting for something, for more than your survival? Can you tell me what it is, do you even know? Is it freedom or truth, perhaps peace - could it be for love? Illusions, Mr. Anderson, vagaries of perception. Temporary constructs of a feeble human intellect trying desperately to justify an existence that is without meaning or purpose. And all of them as artificial as the Matrix itself. Although, only a human mind could invent something as insipid as love. You must be able to see it, Mr. Anderson, you must know it by now! You can’t win, it’s pointless to keep fighting! Why, Mr. Anderson, why, why do you persist?

Neo:
Because I choose to.

Of course, you can’t forget some song lyrics from the best album of the year, Snow Patrol’s Eyes Open…

We need to feel breathless with love,
And not collapse under its weight.
I’m gasping for the air to fill
My lungs with everything I’ve lost.

And finally, because everyone just loves Walter Benjamin (or at least I do)…

Not to find one’s way around a city does not mean much. But to lose one’s way in a city, as one loses one’s way in a forest, requires some schooling. Street names must speak to the urban wanderer like the snapping of dry twigs, and little streets in the heart of the city must reflect the times of day, for him, as clearly as a mountain valley.

So there’s some wisdom from 2006 to kick off 2007 in the right way. Have a happy new year everyone.