At exactly 12:00 A.M., tonight, December 31, 2007, a new year will usher in. Many of us, undoubtedly, have long lists of resolutions, perhaps enough to cover California all the way to Las Vegas. Funny, we do it every year, with same entries in our list, harboring them for at least a month, but as days go by, they all wilt like flowers in a borrowed vase. The next year, our list is populated again with the same entries. ¶ I remember writing in a small newspaper an article about the turn of the century in the year 2000. I wrote what people needed at the turn of the century. It was true then as it is now. I find it appropriate to summarize and re-state it here now. ¶ What we need is CHANGE. By that, I mean total change, not the bits and pieces we used to do. Steven Covey, author of the bestseller " The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" said that change, to be effective, must come from the inside out. What this mean is, you must try to effect the change within yourself first before trying to change or correct somebody else. Your internal self is then manifested outwardly and create meaningful changes to others as well. Apropos' to this is what Albert Einstein once said " The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them." In other words, you have to change now to better solve your past and existing problems. A metamorphosis? You bet. Your problem as a worm is different from your problem as a butterfly.
¶In the movie, Superman III, the superhero, annoyed by warring countries, said "I want you to see the world the way I see it (from outer space), because if you do, it's ONE WHOLE world". Superman wants change. You don't need to build more bridges or dams and buildings to obtain peace, and definitely you don't need another Iraq. Just some fundamental changes in the hearts and mind of our leaders will do the trick. Isn't that cost effective?¶Superman sees the world as one ball of a mess that needs rehab. His desire or capacity for change is boundless. It throbs amidst the steel: it is dynamic. ¶ The Superannuated man, on the other hand, looks at the world nonchalantly and sees no need for change, either out of sheer lethargy, or some misguided principles. He loafs and watches the world go by and thereby gets lost in the quagmire of his own antiquated delusions. His paradigms are as old as mankind itself; his views as old as the universe. He is forever wrapped in a dream. Being lethargic, he gathers moss. ¶So, in this new year, are you going to be a SUPERMAN or a SUPERANNUATED MAN? The choice is yours.