Looking back at the year 2006

Once again, the new year comes along, and we leave behind the year 2006. For many of us, it was a tragic year, dominated by calamities, war, terrorism, hunger, poverty, hatred, dirty politics... we cannot really blame people for having negative memories of 2006. What is good about it is that we can hope for a better year ahead of us, as we've learned, or we have to learn from our experiences in the past.

For me, 2006 was a relatively good year, with a couple of shortcomings, but not zilch on achievements. I look back on the year that was, and listed down some simple accomplishments and blessings to be grateful about:

• Successfully pushed through with my dad's 70th birthday celebration, which was 14 months in the making
• Interestingly survived the challenge of submitting my resignation from XYZ company, despite the unwavering attachment after almost 5 years of service
• Was able to pass on my throne to my personal choice successor
  
• Escaped hunger, famine, and poverty despite 3 months of unemployment
• Created and run a successful yahoogroup: Philippines_Finance_Money_Banking_Investment
• Got employed once again, entering an entirely different field of IT and you-know-what
• Managed well and balanced my time for school, work, and personal life
• Paid off credit card debts
  
• Survived the crash of trust and mutual funds
• Learned the art of online stock trading--being at the right place at the right time--all for the sake of paying credit card debts!
  
• Saved my mobile phone from decay despite dropping it on the floor at an average of 10 times per week
• Visited the Philippine Stock Exchange
• Survived going through a trust fall, although my team mates have other crazy memories of my fall (funny, awkward, wayward, etc.)
• Migrated from "job hunting" to "job matching"
• Got the chance to visit Tondo
• Got the chance to enter Highlands
• Somehow got into the e-loading business, errr... pastime
  
• Confirmed my theory that Coke, Pepsi, Pop, and Virgin Cola are the true remedy for LBM
• Stayed awake for 42 hours, on a hectic school weekend
• Survived the powerful typhoon Milenyo, my first physical, on-the-scene encounter with an eye of a storm
• Got myself a membership for WWF
  
• Delivered a successful speech/seminar for college students
• Survived almost a tragedy... in the kitchen, I dropped over a hundred pieces of frozen fries into boiling oil... the oil went into flames!!! upon clearing up the would-be kitchen-on-fire, I saw myself unharmed... but looking at the surrounding area, cooking oil all over the floor, and just two feet away from me, a sack of kitchen trash--burnt with holes because of the sizzling oil that spilled all over the place! Very thankful to have survived unharmed, despite entering the hell of oil and flames.
• ... the list goes on and on... countless blessings

See, if we could just count our blessings, we realize that we are far more fortunate than many others, and we could have thought that the past year has been great. It is really we who direct the path to our own lives, no matter how influential our environment may be, we can survive and appreciate the opportunity that was given to us, to live a meaningful life full of joy and fulfillment!

Happy New Year!!! Welcome 2007 !!!

-Dexter