Looking Back Over 2012

This year is finally drawing to an end and there has been many unexpected twists and turns throughout the past twelve months.

I published my second book back in August and have written over 10,000 words on my third novel. I  secured myself a second job last month and so far that is going well.

But for various reasons, good and bad, 2012 hasn't ended like I had predicted. At the start of this year I had many different business goals to accomplish and I am proud to say I have achieved them all. I did exactly what I had planned to do and the results were instant. But the fantasy of achieving these goals and the reality of every day life has turned out to be very different.

And that is life through and through.

People often think that if they changed their life in a certain way they would be much happier. And maybe they would for a short time. But whatever the situation, good or bad, there will always be pros and cons. You may think being a millionaire is a guaranteed road to happiness and it probably is, but only in the financial area of your life.

True happiness doesn't stem from how much money you have or how many flash cars you drive. It stems from a much deeper satisfaction of being true to yourself and expressing your personality in a way that only you know how.

My true happiness stems from writing and spending time with loved ones. I don't care that I haven't updated my phone in ten years to a iphone or Blackberry - I am quite happy with my beloved, trusted Nokia 3410. After all, it's only a phone and all I need it for is to call and text. No device like that is really worth much. It's never going to find a cure for cancer.

Nothing materialistic is ever going to bring me much happiness.

Now I'm not saying that I can get by in life without money - nobody can. We all need money to eat, be warm and clean, and to surf the Internet in the hope of connecting to people overseas. I could not live without broadband and I need money to keep that! But society today places too much value on fame and how people look. And if you don't look a certain way then you end up being accused of all sorts.

Where has kindness and compassion gone? Has it left human souls forever more? The tragic events in America over the last couple of days seem to answer this very well, and it's here that I'd like to say that all the victims are in my thoughts.

So, as it's Christmas, the very time of year that we should make an effort to be nice to each other (although why we can't have that mindset throughout the whole year really baffles me) Make an effort and do a random act of kindness for someone.

I'll be away from this blog until after New Year so may I wish all my followers a very happy holiday.