I made it to 2026. And I’m grateful. If 2024 was hard, 2025 was harder. But what didn’t kill me only made me stronger.
When times are hard, I think about my parents and all our cherished conversations. I wasn’t an easy child to raise. I always spoke my mind — even when they didn’t want to hear it. But in return, I received from them, countless words of wisdom.
Life is hard. You can’t expect any favors from anyone. No one’s going to help you so you need to help yourself.
Life is not fair so don’t expect it to be. Some will demand more than what they deserve — and they’re usually the ones who have done little or nothing to earn what they believe they deserve. It’s not just. But for peace to prevail, someone will have to be the bigger person.
The ones who work hard and well will bear the brunt of all the work that needs to be done. Because no one wants to give the lazy, the unreliable or the incompetent, the responsibility of getting things done.
You can always spot a hard-working person from a lazy one. The hard worker is constantly looking for things to do. The lazy ones sit, nest and wait for what to do.
Be wary of people with the gift of gab. They can prove more dangerous than you think.
Those who can spew lies from their mouths faster than puke when they get shellfish poisoning are people who will twist the truth, tell tall tales and manufacture memories seemingly unforgettable.
Do not allow yourself to be trapped into their web of lies.
Do not be seduced by those who bear gifts. They don’t always give with the best of intentions. Is it altruism or is it self-promotion? Is it benevolence or is it corruption?
A person of integrity will honor your wishes long after you are gone. They are bound not by contract but by their character to honor what was agreed upon. A person without honor, however, despite the number of signatures they affix, will do as they like rather than do what is right.
The greedy will never be happy. Because no matter how much they have, the thought that someone else has more will always keep them unhappy, envious and awake at night.
Those who live perpetually fixated on what they could have had, don’t have and will never have will die miserable because they live in a constant state of feeling deprived, cheated and robbed of life.
The grass is not greener on the other side. The grass is greener where you tend it. There is no easy way to make money — that is, if it’s an honorable and honest way to make money.
Life is a series of trade-offs. Everything comes with a price. You can’t have your cake and eat it too. If you try to have everything, you will end up with nothing.
Work hard and for as long as you can. Retirement won’t always give you a longer life. It can, sometimes, bring you an early death. Don’t blow all your money away when you get some because tomorrow, you could end up with none.
Life is unpredictable. The mighty can fall. The weak can rise. Never oppress others.
No one can be completely happy all the time. This is life. The alternative is death. Always be grateful for all that you have.
Don’t kill yourself over the sins of others. It’s not your sin. It’s theirs. They hurt you but you shouldn’t have to suffer more for it. The one who lives, triumphs.
It doesn’t matter what others say about you. What matters is that God, all the time, knows what is true.
I made it to 2026. And I’m grateful. No matter how heartbreaking, life is still better when you know the truth. What doesn’t kill me will only make me stronger. And what will eventually kill me will only make me immortal.
I walk into 2026 with faith and fortitude. I trust in God’s plans.