"Storms never last…"

A week before he died, George Harrison turned to an old friend who had called to visit the former Beatle on his death-bed and simply said; 'Nothing lasts'.That, my friends, is one of the few certainties on earth; nothing lasts! 'All good things must come to an end' is something we all know and accept.But in equal portions we need to remember that all bad things come to an end too: in other words; 'this too shall pass'. Since the world was first created, it has been plagued by plagues, wars, earthquakes and all types of natural and unnatural disasters - like our potato famine for example. The one thing that all these bad things have in common is that none of them lasted.In comparison to above, the 'disaster' we are currently experiencing is not too bad at all, but almost everyone you meet on the street is wearing a long face - getting longer by the day over the recession. Snap out of it. Get a grip, because this too is a temporary affair which shall pass. Not only will it pass but good will come of this period in our lives. We will again look to depend and support each other and be drawn closer together in adversity. A bit of humility won"t do any of us any harm. We have seen an awful change come over some people over the past decade when they reached the top of the pile and before they started to slide back down the other side. Don"t blame anyone for this human frailty because we were all holding on for dear life to the longest tail in the history of the state; the tail of the tiger which has now gone the way of the dodo. Whatever about the dodo, the Celtic Tiger was a phoney, as were many of those who tail grabbed.Right now it does not matter how or why we got here, but this is where we are. 'What will happen now and what can we do' everyone is asking. It is good that the people are all discussing the recession because we are creating a togetherness, a bond, a fellowship - a 'we-are-all-in-this-together' mentality. People are starting to become more friendly towards each other as always happens in a common cause. During the London bombing blitz of the last war there was almost a jovial atmosphere in the shelters and on the rubble-strewn streets. The level of helpfulness, friendliness, sharing and courtesy among strangers astonished commentators. The heroics of survivors who went back to rescue fellow citizens after the tsunami in New Orleans or 9/11 in New York created or strengthened a fellowship which will sustain for years to come.In Ireland today there are less divides than there were a year ago. We now have the opposite to 'keeping up with the Jones"s'; the man or woman who were going to buy the new car now don"t want to do it, to avoid flaunting it in front of their neighbours. It is now cool to think small or do without. This might not be good for the economy but it"s good for the community. Expect to soon see people looking out for their friends and wondering should they share with those who have less. Strangely, that"s how it works when all have barely enough. You would also imagine that stress will be increased in the population but the opposite is true. Stress is worst when hanging onto the tail and not able to be your true self. The Chinese, with their phenomenal economy growth are now experiencing massive anxiety and depression - even in their children. Fifty years ago, 50 per cent of British people claimed to be happy. Last year, with triple the wealth, this was down to a third. Is there not a lesson there? Of course we will always experience stress and a certain amount is necessary and good, but when we allow it to exceed a reasonable limit, trouble begins.Prudence was a word the late Michael Rooney from Delvin used often and I don"t believe I have heard it in the past ten years. In the bible, prudence or prudent means 'being good stewards or managers of the gifts God gave us to use.' I think it is fair to say that we have not been prudent!First thing now is for all of us to face up to the new reality. So, we slept in a half-million Euro house last year and we now sleep in a quarter-million Euro house: SO WHAT!! Get rid of feelings of anger, guilt, denial or blame. The business or job is going badly and you can"t make the agreed repayments: don"t worry about it, you can only do what"s possible. Go in and talk to your bank manager; he or she is human too and if you are doing your best, no one can ask for more. You can"t make the car payments? So let them take it; you didn"t commit any crime, there is no shame in not having money and there are smashing (no pun intended) banger bargains out there. Communicate with people around you - don"t bottle it up. Everyone is in the same boat. Do a bit of exercise: physical exercise calms the mind and redirects thoughts and energy away from worries and concerns. Why do you think I walk in three miles for a newspaper! You cannot hold a vacuum in your head so the only way to get rid of a negative thought is to replace it with a positive one. Think of the good thing which happened to you yesterday, (yes there did!) do a good deed for someone - and feck the recession!Involvement in sport is a Godsend, either as a participant or fan. During this turbulent year we celebrate 125 years of the GAA. As we reflect with pride on how this wonderful organisation helped our forefathers through the most difficult times in our history, we know it will once again help to sooth the nation"s need. So get involved: get out there and you won"t even think of …… what"s this we were talking about..?Don"t forgetThe most important bit is being here - and not just for the good times.