In a couple of weeks from now we turn the New Year 2000. I know nothing’s going to happen, all will be as it is….or will it? Does anybody really believe that chaos will reign as we chime in the New Year? Are all our computers prepared? Are all the countries of the world prepared? To many of us, it’s all doom and gloom….but I’ve noticed over the past month some strange things are starting to occur….

Here in New York on New Year’s Eve at least one airplane terminal will be closed for lack of flights…in other words, nobody wants to be in the air when the clock ticks twelve. New York is well known for its New Year’s Eve Extravaganzas, but many celebrations have been canceled for lack of ticket sales. Times Square, I’m sure, will be full….but all New York City police officers have been put on notice that none of them are allowed the last week of the year to take any time off. Is it me? Or do you find that many people seem to, this year, want to get the Holidays over with fast? As we approach Y2K the thought of writing 2000 next to the date seems a little strange, when all of our lives the number 19- felt very comfortable.

I personally don’t believe the world will end, but I do indeed think that the year 2000 is presenting itself as a New Beginning…..hopefully, we can leave behind many of the things that have hurt us individually and as a society. The subconscious is a strange thing….while we deny things on the surface, lurking below can easily be a contradiction. Perhaps inside we ask ourselves, “How would we face chaos?”, even if it doesn’t happen.

Recently I went shopping at my local supermarket. I was looking around the aisles for some instant mashed potatoes….there were none to be found, so I approached the store manager and asked him where I could find my “instant potatoes?” He told me “They were here.” I asked him who “they” were, and he told me, “The Y2K’ers”….they bought up everything in the store that they could simply add water to.” Well, the Y2K’ers, for now, own all of our local store’s instant food.

Each night on the evening news a clock is displayed, ticking down the remaining days to the New Year. The fear, for many, grows. Can it be that we only truly value Life when we are faced with it’s possible demise? In a world that is primarily run on Fear, Greed and Lust, not on Intelligence, a little self-examination is not so bad. Come January 3, 2000, if we all head back to work on that Monday morning, many of us may have a strange look on our faces…realizing not only that the world did not end, but that we are faced with a New Beginning. I believe the world is not a theatrical stage…. that certain events may not happen “on cue”….not to say that they won’t happen….just not when we expect them to.

Enjoy the Holidays….embrace those you love, try to be a better person. If we practice these things, each year the world will become a better place for it. Time doesn’t have to be our enemy….it can be our friend…..

Happy New Year,

Jennifer Avalon
© 1999 Jennifer Avalon