As 2016 draws to a close, for many quite thankfully, I thought I'd take the time just to acknowledge old times past.
2016 has been a merry go round for me personally, I've given up anti-depressants and I've come back on anti-depressants. But from the people that we've lost this year, I'm going to look and see what I wisdom I can take from them into the New Year.
David Bowie - 8 January 1947 – 10 January 2016
Alan Rickman - 21 February 1946 – 14 January 2016 - He first came to my attention as Severus Snape in the Harry Potter films and consequently served as a big inspiration for my acting. Alan Rickman was the ultimate master of detail.
Terry Wogan - 3 August 1938 – 31 January 2016
Ronnie Corbett - 4 December 1930 – 31 March 2016
Victoria Wood - 19 May 1953 – 20 April 2016 - Victoria Wood, the talented writer and actress, was a massive inspiration to me as a child when there still weren't many female comedians.
Prince - June 7, 1958 – April 21, 2016
Muhammed Ali - January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016
Caroline Aherne - 24 December 1963 – 2 July 2016
Gene Wilder - June 11, 1933 – August 29, 2016
Leonard Cohen - September 21, 1934 – November 7, 2016
Andrew Sachs - 7 April 1930 – 23 November 2016
Liz Smith - 11 December 1921 – 24 December 2016
George Michael - 25 June 1963 – 25 December 2016
Carrie Fisher - October 21, 1956 – December 27, 2016
Debbie Reynolds - April 1, 1932 – December 28, 2016
2016 also seems to have been the year of questionable decisions. brexit and trump just to address the elephants in the room. No matter the reasoning behind these votes, intolerance and bullying has risen drastically in the wake of these decisions. People no longer feel welcome in their homes. How can we profess to being so far ahead when this still can be allowed to happen?
But good things happened as well.
- New chemotherapy breakthroughs have increased the 5-year survival for pancreatic cancer from 16% to 27% (and is getting better)
- Child mortality is down everywhere and it keeps going down.
- Tiger, manatees and panda numbers are growing.
- The ozone layer is repairing itself
- A new therapy developed in Israel could cure radiation sickness.
- The Anglican church resolved to solemnize same-sex unions the same as opposite-sex unions which required a super majority of all three orders of the church
- An Afghan teacher has been delivering books via bicycle to villages that lack schools
- Over 800 Boko Harem Hostages were rescued by Nigerian Army
- Leonardo Di Caprio won an Oscar
- We're back in the Wizarding World once more
- A peace deal has been reached in Columbia
- Sri Lanka is now maleria free
- Andy Murray won at Wimbledon
- We're getting closer to curing HIV
- Paris Climate Change Agreement came into force
I don't know if I'll make any New Years Resolutions. I'm not very good at keeping them. I know that I'd like to get skinny and happy and make lots of friends, but at the moment I'm focusing on getting out of bed each day and getting dressed. Baby steps.
