Yeah, 2016 wasn't the best. I will give everyone that. There is no fight there. That being said though, we as human beings have this weird habit of looking at the negatives and not the positives of life. I'm guilty of it, and I'm willing to bet you are too.

This year for me I dealt with homesickness with being far from home for really the first time, I dealt with not having friends went I was home, I almost transferred from my university....twice, I lost friends, I had drama and fights with my friends, I felt helpless, I felt downright depressed at times. It has been a year. But at the same time...

I became a Resident Assistant, I joined a Regional Board of Directors, I strengthened my passion in history with my student teaching, I found a new passion for student affairs, I made many new friends, I became a mentor, I was president of a student org, I was in a play, I didn't go to the hospital all year (big step for me with my asthma), made memories, and so much more.

If I sat down and (for me personally, the world is a different problem) rated the good and the bad; the bad out weigh the good.

So for yourself, for your family, and for the world right now, take a step back for a moment? Think about 2016 as a whole? Is there any highlights, and positives?

See, in a time where everything seems bad, you have to be grateful for the little things. You have to look up and not just say how terrible things are and how horrible 2017 will be.

I'm not a positive person. I'm actually very pessimistic about everything. But, I know my history. Personal and world history. And I know that it is okay to feel as if everything is bad and this is the end.

It isn't the end. That isn't me being positive, it's a fact. So take a moment. Thank those who were here for you this year and who have made an impact on your life.

And smile, we have a lot of work to do and can't do it as a world if we don't have some spot of light in out lives.