At the end of every year, humanity convinces itself to start afresh, to begin anew, to change every menial thing that it disliked from the previous year (or two) into something different. We attempt to perfect our imperfections, to right our wrongs, to become overall better human beings.

Next year will be different, we cheer to ourselves.

We will become better.

We will change!

We will start again!

Together, we shun the decisions of the previous year; right and wrong. The celebration of a new year is optimistic, opportunistic, but it has become more focused on the things that we should change for the following year rather than an acknowledgement of the previous one.

Yes, 2015 saw a total of 4.4 million Syrian refugees registered by the United Nations, the death of more than 220,000 during the four years of Syrian civil war, the terror of the Islamist extremist attack in Paris, the appropriation of racism and sexism by the presidential candidate, Donald Trump, the death of more than 8,000 in the 7.8 Nepalese earthquake, the accusation of Bill Cosby sexually assaulting more than fifty women, the incineration of 61,000 acres of Californian soil in two days, the sixth worst mass shooting since 1982, a worryingly serious dispute between Russia and Turkey, and a plunge in the Chinese stock market but this is not only what the year was made up of.

2015 saw a rally of millions in Paris protesting against the terror in the capital, united against the threat of the Islamic State. After five decades of enmity, Cuba and the United States restore diplomatic relations. Pope Francis expressed unity in the Central African Republic; “Christians and Muslims are brothers and sisters”. The Supreme Court ruled the legalisation of same-sex marriage in every American state. Nearly two hundred countries, large and small, have agreed to a long-term Climate Agreement, continuing to battle more vigorously against climate change. Yes, the world was divided by the blue-black, white-gold dress but a giant X-Ray machine reunited us, showing that love has no gender, love has no race, love has no disability, love has no age, and love has no religion, Love Has No Lables.

So, together, let us take a moment to reflect on the previous year, not just the bad but the good, not just the wrong but the right.