A Quiet Reflection on 2025: Finding Hope in a Hard Year...

As this year draws to a close, I find myself in a reflective space. The festive lights seem to shine against a backdrop of a particularly challenging year. From the heartbreaking news out of Bondi Beach to the quieter, systemic struggles here at home, it’s been a period that has weighed heavily on the spirit.

Here in Canada, I’ve contemplated the distance that can grow between people and the systems meant to serve them. The loss of those 400 ostriches in BC stands not just as a tragedy for the animals, but as a symbol of a cold, bureaucratic logic that seems to override common sense and compassion. It’s a mindset that touches everything—from how we manage our health, where treatment often seems prioritized over wellness, to the simple dream of owning a home, which feels increasingly out of reach for a generation.

The rising cost of living is more than numbers on a receipt; it’s a quiet stress that dims the light at the table. It’s hard to feel festive when you’re worrying about groceries or when the young people in your life wonder if building equity is a story from the past.

And yet—this is the time of year for ‘yet.’

We light candles in the darkness. We gather. This season reminds us that resilience is a quiet, powerful force. I see a growing awareness, a collective stirring, where people are beginning to question, to seek real solutions, and to value personal agency over impersonal control. There is a hope, not in blindly ignoring the problems, but in the courageous decision to face them.

So, as we wish each other Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, let’s infuse those words with intention. Let them be a promise—to ourselves and to our community—to carry more awareness, more kindness, and more determined hope into 2026. The new year won’t be better by chance, but by our choice to build, to connect, and to gently, firmly, reclaim the things that truly matter.

Wishing you a peaceful holiday and a hopeful, brighter year to come.

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