The glitter and the sparkle of the New Year's Eve has gone. The beauty of the firecrackers simmers in the bottom of our memory. We still remember people were blowing the trumpets and heralding in chorus the coming of the New Year. It was a happiest moment for all people around the globe. The New Year's Eve is a time where people join to realise that time is whisking by leaving them behind. These hullabaloos are still kept locked somewhere in ourselves with all dots of happy and sad impressions. However, there is one thing that we must not ignore, that is a question that always comes across to our minds; a question about what we achieved in the year has just passed by, and what we are going to achieve in the year on which we have just embarked. A wise word says that the great person is he or she who thinks that today must be better than yesterday, and tomorrow must be better than today. This maxim emphasises that time always runs on its amazingly rapid wheels and we cannot hold it even for a second. Be that as it may, our ultimate effort to utilise this invaluable moment is how to create a great achievement through such a passing time in the passage of our precious life.
Albeit such a glamorous moment in celebrating the New Year Eve, the onset of 2009 has still been marked by so many humanitarian catastrophes which are mainly caused by human hands. Some natural disasters that are happening now, such as flood, landslides, the mudflow in Sidoarjo, the crisis of energy, and the like are the result of human greediness and irresponsible behaviours. The globe has also witnessed the persistent wild and uncivilised human traditions that bring about massive destruction. Let us see what is happening now in Palestine, Iraq, Afghanistan, Sudan, Ethiopia, and elsewhere. Obviously, in these places atrocities have become the triumphant civilisation of modern humankinds. The oppression against the fellow humankinds has claimed billions of innocent casualties and natural ruins. It seems that we have yet to transform ourselves to be better inhabitants of this world. We are not able to keep harmonious life under the banner of the global village due to our ignorance of the past. We are seemingly to ignore that the continuation of this life is actually at our stake. We are sinners if we just relax and stay away from this reality.
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What does it mean when a person says, “I want to enjoy this beautiful life”? This could mean that this person just wants to sit and stretch his or her legs enjoying the sunset in the beach. Another person might prefer to have a life without being haunted by everyday problems and live in a secluded place on the top of hill. These two interpretations by all means imply a philosophical consequence which provides that a desired achievement will definitely come into being with a dream and necessary efforts. If we let a time pass by in front of our noses without a least achievement whatsoever, indeed we are in a great lost. We need to do something and decorate every new day with something beneficial. Some of us tend to show an apathetic sigh when talking about the past. They seem to be reluctant to rekindle their looming failures scattered in the times of yore. They pretend that life is only full of white passage. Therefore, they do not learn from what happened in the past. Sometimes it is true that history repeats itself in our lives. We perhaps often commit a same mistake. Why does it happen? It is because we try to bury all remnants of the past and never take their virtues of wisdom to face the future.
Yes, it is quite true that the past has to go and let it go forever. However, we have to admit that it is an inevitable part of our lives without which there is neither present nor tomorrow. There must be some good lessons we can gain from the past. Hence, our present will not let well enough alone, since we try to create a better picture on this mysterious canvas of life. A change will not happen automatically unless we intend to make a change and force ourselves to move. An egg will not hatch unless there is a motivation and movement from inside. Just lamenting upon the past does not bring any good. Do not cry over spilled milk. In this regard, God says: “By the time, verily the mankind are in lost, except such as have faith, and do righteous deeds, and (join together) in the mutual enjoining of truth, and of patience and constancy” (the Qur’an 103: 1-3).
This Devine saying above implies that every person must be a winner in his own life by having faith, doing good deeds, and being cooperative in finding solutions for any problem. With a strong faith we will have a vigorous mentality and robust spirituality by which we can walk through any difficult passage of life. We will be able to develop a strong self-confidence because we trust this life and any effort we make in the Most Supreme Being. Righteous deeds are any kind of good productive deeds. We transform words into deeds; a theory into practice; a zero into a hero for the sake of others’ benefits and the benefits for ourselves. We cannot be deaf, dumb, or blind in tackling so many social problems perceptible before our eyes. This, in turns, will lead our personality wider and more open-minded to receive suggestions from others or give advice to others to find what the best solution is. Hence, there is no reason to be a looser in this temporary life. I remember one of the Prophet words which says “the best person amongst you is he or she who gives benefit to other fellow humankinds”. Regardless of the skin colours, religious affiliations, cultural groups, each of us is liable to create a better tomorrow and promote a harmonious life for the sake of better civilisation. Thus, are we ready to do something better in this New Year? Do not think about a big one, since a great history begins from a small one. Then, It’d be better to start now. Happy New Year.
Melbourne, 15 January 2009.
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