Ten Years After

The new millennium, Y2K, or the year 2000, was met with guardians at the gate. Warriors, ready to fight the hoards of people who failed to prepare for famine, failed governments, collpased energy grids and impotent businesses, gathered weapons, generators and supplies. The dark predicitons fizzled like a wet fire cracker when disaster failed to strike.

In contrast, it felt like we graciously opened the door to welcome in the second decade of this millennium. No one seemed sad to give 2009, and the first ten years, the boot. I understand why. On September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks destroyed the World Trade Center, damaged part of the Pentagon, and resulted in a plane crash in Pennsylvania. We are still pursuing Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaeda. For the first time, Americans began to experience life with terrorism as a constant near and present danger. We precariously teetered across the tight rope of global financial meltdown and national depression.

The energy of this new decade feels positive and light rather than ominous and heavy like its predecessor. But is this new decade in its honeymoon phase? You know, in 2012, just two years from now, another apocalyptic, end of the world prophesy is foretold in the Mayan Calendar. I've already seen long-term food storage and survival guides being advertised. 2012 is touted as being real and not a Henny-Penny, sky is falling, y2k, scenario. How long are we really going to be happy with this new decade?

For many years, I've heard the widely held end of the world theory of 2012. But there are other theories. One of those is that the Mayan Calendar marked the year 2012 as the date that we, as a society, embark on a enlightened period of humanity. And that, in the years leading up to that date, we would face near catastrophic events and conditions. That times would be hard and beings who are not strong enough or prepared for this new period may leave the planet. Which made me think of all the people who were checking out last summer like Michael Jackson, Farrah Fawcett and Billy Mays. Wasn't it remarkable how many people left in one short time?

I'm going to take the position that we've gotten through the worst of those catastrophic times. And, although I know that the next few years won't be all strawberries and whipped cream, I think we are about done wading through the muck. I'm going to hold the thought that we are at the beginning of a new era, a wonderful era, and an era that will be recorded in history as the golden age on Earth.

And so it is!