On New Year’s Eve 2009 my family and I made a little ritual, a variation on resolutions, if you like. We wrote down all the things we were glad to say goodbye to, as well as all the things we were grateful for. Then we wrote down our hopes and wishes for the year to come. My list of hopes and wishes has been a touchstone through the year. It’s not magical thinking a la The Secret, it’s a reminder of what I need to prioritise, what I need to make happen.
As I reflected on 2010, I realised that it’s been a bit of a watershed year for me and my generation. Clegg, Cameron and Milliband are all Generation X. In 2011, the first of the Baby Boomers hit 65. I’ve waited my whole life for my generation to rule the world and now it seems our time has come. And the question is, what will be our legacy?
So, my first post of the new year is a rant. A challenge, if you like, to me and my peers, to step up and show some leadership. Will Nick ‘Empty Pledge’ Clegg or – worse – Sarah Palin (shudder) be the poster children for Gen X in Power? or can we put aside our slacker reputation and really make a difference in the world?