Happy New Year 2026
Or is it?
When thinking about the year we’re about to face, I’ve found several metaphors.
2026 is like a road trip. Where most years feel like we’re just tooling down the highway, making our journey through life, 2026 feels like we’re driving down the highway with a cop behind us. We are suddenly more self-aware, and conscious of our own actions. We’re wondering what we should do right now. It’s a road trip, but not a fun one.
2026 is also like a cicada. Instead of it being a 12-year or a 17-year cicada, it’s a cicada that’s been burrowing for a much longer time. Sorry Billy Joel, but we did start this fire around 160 years ago after the last cicada stopped bellowing. Now its ugly progeny has once again blistered its way out and it’s going to be noisy for a while.
2026 is also going to be a mirror. It’s going to show us who we really are. For most of my life, the Americans who looked like me have been numb and stupefied. For decades we’ve been anesthetized by bread and circuses. We disregarded the news because it didn’t suit us. But when you can’t afford bread, the circus loses its luster. Because of that, many Americans who were once bitterly opposed are actually considering a temporary easing of our differences to try to fix the things we agree on. I wonder if 2026 will be the year that we’ll be able to link arms? If we do, major … and I mean major things could change.
2026 is also like Schrodinger’s cat. We’re not sure if this year is going to end up nice or bad. But we’re about to pop the lid on that box and take a look.
“Wow Jim,” you might be saying. “Are you sure you’re wishing us a happy new year?”
I am sure. Let me introduce you to a tree called Pando.
If you’re wondering which one is Pando, they all are. This is all the same tree. It is the largest living organism on Earth. These are 47,000 cloned offshoots of the same exact tree. The overall organism is probably at least 16,000 years old, making it older than anything else on earth (that’s bigger than a microbe). It has survived fires and droughts and maybe even an ice age. It lives on because it is a legion of communicating parts that never waver on its top priority of taking care of Pando.
One day in the distant future, 2026 will be just another growth ring on Pando. Pando doesn’t care. Pando isn’t afraid. Pando is strong. Pando can survive whatever you throw at it. Be like Pando.
Happy New Year! Buckle up!