2001 is over and I don't think I personally know anyone that will miss it.

"Time is the great leveler. It gives perspective, heals wounds and brings hope with every new day. Time guides us all by silently marching on. It never reverses itself. It never stagnates and though it may slow up, it never stops."

In my lifetime, I have seen so much happen to other people and I've had to deal personally with more tragedies than I care to mention. Not to say that my life has been any worse than anyone else's, but believe me I know heartbreak. I know cruelty and I've looked death in the face more than once. My experiences don't make me a sage or a prophet or even wise.

What I've lived through is the same stuff that billions of humans have had to deal with for all of their existence. Any one who has been to hell will tell you, the road leads both ways. When you find yourself at the bottom of the pit, you either give up or you scratch and claw your way out. You brush yourself off and you move on. That's what people do.

January first is just another day on a calendar. It's really no different than any other day except that it reminds us of one of life's greatest gifts: Time.

Time is the great leveler. It gives perspective, heals wounds and brings hope with every new day. Time guides us all by silently marching on. It never reverses itself. It never stagnates and though it may slow up, it never stops. Time tells us the truth that regardless of our own issues, the earth will still spin and the sun will still shine and in the end, all that matters is what we did with our time.

When I saw 2001: A Space Odyssey, it affected me so much, I was sure that computers were evil, uncontrollable creations that would lead to our undoing. Now, I know that computers and the Internet are the pathways to opening up the world and will result in a human unity we could have only imagined in 1968. 2001 has come and gone and while the stuff of science fiction is now science fact, this year will not be remembered for it's technology but rather will be known for a year when the oldest of human emotions: hatred reared its ugly head.

We all know what happened. We all know what has happened since. What we don't know is what will happen. There will be those who try to predict the future. Some of them will be close to accurate, but time will show us that we can never predict everything just like no one could predict commercial airplanes would be used as wrecking balls. No one can say for sure what new threat is in our future. Life is unpredictable, messy and never goes according to plan. Time tells us that nothing is certain except it's passing.

Fifty odd years ago, America and Russia were friends. Then they were enemies. Now it looks as if they're friends again. England once ruled the world. Rome once ruled the world. China has billions of citizens. Who can accurately say where the world will be in 25 years? The fate of everyone can change in a New York minute.

This may sound hopeless to those who have lived on this planet for a short period of time. They are still used to the predictability of Mom and Dad and school. Uncertainty is a monster in the closet waiting to attack. Bad things happen and no crystal ball can tell them when the bad things will come.

Those of us who've been around for a while know that uncertainty is what makes life an ever-amazing wonder. Yes, we know that at any moment fate can come and slap us around. We also know that if we keep going eventually, fate will come and bless us with unexpected delights.

The beauty of having survived trauma and heartache is that the survival gives us strength. We have learned that whatever awful things we have suffered only make it easier the next time chance throws us for a loop. We know that bad things happen and then good things happen. We know that time cures everything and that worrying about what is in store is a waste of the precious gift of time.

Every new year. Every new day. Every second of our lives is a treasure. I hope in this New Year, no matter what befalls us, we never lose sight of the passing of time. I hope we learn to stop looking back and stop living in fear of what's coming next. My hope is we all look at what we have now. We have each other and as long as the earth turns and the sun shines, we have time.