Ringing in the new year
It is time to think about making New Year’s resolutions
The New Year is almost upon us.
And with 2018 just peeping over the horizon come the inevitable predictions for the future.
According to respected “seer”, Craig Hamilton-Parker, the future looks quite gloomy, with most of the horrors of 2017 not only continuing, but intensifying. Numerology.com is on side, with the prediction the next nine years will be “dominated by information chaos”.
I now understand why ancient rulers sometimes viciously replaced their soothsayers in hopes of more positive results. So, best we focus on those New Year’s resolutions that the majority of us discard by mid-January.
History tells us that making promises at the start of the new year goes back some 4,000 years to Babylonian times. It is a practice that has existed in most cultures – including the Romans – and one that then evolved into a Christian tradition. Resolutions are akin to change. The practice essentially involves looking back over the year and focusing on what has gone badly. A pledge is then made to follow a new path that will correct the damaging practices or behaviours of the past, appease the gods and, hopefully, reverse the former failings.
It is somewhat amazing that such an ancient practice would still exist in 2018. It follows that true success depends entirely on being realistic about a proposed change – especially as it relates to an ingrained behaviour. Since changing my ways is unlikely, I will not succumb to making any personal resolutions! Good luck, though. In South Shore news: Looking for a way to celebrate the end of the old and the beginning of the new without travelling beyond the South Shore? Tonight’s Black & White Ball New Year’s Eve-Eve at the Grand Victorian, Victoria-bythe-Sea, might be just the thing. For information, call 902-9400228 or go to grandvictorianpei. com. For folks interested in New Year’s Day activities throughout the Island, the 2018 “levee” schedule provides an array of possibilities. Check out https:// ruk.ca/levee-2018. Community Schools start in January - just two hours per week for 10 weeks. For information, go to https:// peicommunityschools.com/ wp-content/uploads/2017/12/ Community-School-Winterflyer-2017-18-FINAL.pdf.
Beginning in early 2018, the East Prince Women’s Information Centre is offering a comprehensive Women’s Employability Program open to women across the Island. It includes a training allowance and possible child care and travel expenses. For information, call 902-436-9856.
Dance classes for children four to seven years of age begin Jan. 18, 6:30 p.m., at the Bonshaw Community Centre. For information, go to 902-213-2461 or email stonehavenstudio@ gmail.com. The francophone/ Acadian community is hard at work assisting all bilingual and francophone residents across P.E.I. Free info luncheons are scheduled for bilingual business operators to learn about the various services available. Small Jobs Acadien was recently launched in Wellington for job seekers. And, once again in 2018, there is a “concours des dragons” (similar to Dragon’s Den), with a $10,000 cheque for the winner. For information, go to 902-854-3439.
Do you have a business in the south shore area – large, small, micro or home-based? Consider participating in a “round-table” to discuss ways to find new opportunities. For information, go to cawlar@bellaliant.net.
The South Shore Health and Wellness Committee (SSHWC) has been established to advocate for renewed health-care services within the South Shore. Volunteers of all talents are required in order to assist with this huge undertaking. For information, go to 902-658-2620 or 902-393-3464.
The district conventions for all Women’s Institute Branches across the Island are being held before the middle of March, with our own District No. 7 tentatively scheduled for March 6. Find out about a WI near you and what it has to offer. Go to www.peiwi.ca. In the spirit of the season, remember the South Shore Food Share throughout the year. For information, go to Facebook or call 902-439-4821.
May 2018 bring you and yours joy, peace, health, happiness and prosperity!
Diana Lariviere of Argyle Shore is a freelance writer and P.E.I. marriage commissioner. Her column for The Guardian appears in the newspaper on the last Saturday of each month. She welcomes comments, suggested topics for future columns and public service announcement submissions to ruraltidings@gmail.com or 902-675-3221. The deadline for submission is the 15th of each month.