ONE EXTRA DAY IN THE NEW YEAR? GRAB IT WITH BOTH HANDS








Pic.: Nicole Gubin
The thought that 2016 – the so-called New Year – would be a ‘leap year’ hadn’t crossed my mind, till a young-man reminded me of it at a function, two days ago. This man told me, that he was trying to go abroad for better prospects; but, he was unwilling to do so in 2016 as it would be a leap year. “I am told, that a leap year is not good for a major decision,” he said with conviction.

“Do you believe in that theory?” I asked the young-man, almost amused.

“Yes, I do,” came the answer, “I prefer to be a little superstitious when it comes to some things in life.”

Well, I preferred to change the topic!

2015 is still not over. The flood-waters in Chennai haven’t fully gone back, yet. Nobody expected 2015 would be so bad for Chennai and its beautiful people… Earthquake shattered Nepal in 2015. Nobody expected that would happen, too, in 2015 for such peace-loving people. Syria, France, Greece were battered in 2015. Gang-rapes and gang-wars were very much rampant in 2015. Weddings and divorces, births and deaths, health and sickness, financial triumphs and bankruptcies… academic excellence and failures… electoral victories and defeats… court convictions and acquittals… yes, whatever good or bad can happen in life, has happened in the year that is about to get over…

And, my young friend prefers to believe, that 2016 would be a bad year… just because it is going to be a leap year!

God hasn’t made leap years; man has. So, whatever God wants to mete out to us, He would in 2016…

So, let’s not worry too much about that-one-extra-day thing in life. There is a lot more to be worry about. One of them is: What we carry with us into the New Year…

“Wherever we go, we carry ourselves.” Have you heard this?

Rejoice… It is just like the Baker’s Dozen… one extra in a dozen… this is one-day-extra in the coming year… Grab it with your both hands!

GERALD D’CUNHA

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