A Year of Reflection

First of all, special announcement. We will be this very hard working team that is made up of myself and my producer Andrew, who have been working together for the last five years, are taking a break between Christmas and New Year, so there will not be new content because what we've decided is that we're going to take our own advice, which is I tell folks to rest all the time, to take a break so that you don't

have a breakdown. And you know, what you don't know is that in order to have content between the week of Christmas and New Year's it requires a lot, a lot, a lot, a lot, a lot, a lot of pretaping. And as you all know, I am also the host of two other shows, and so our gift to ourselves this year was to say, hey, we're actually going to take a real break and allow ourselves to breathe. So today's episode will be the last episode until we return

with fresh content in January. So folks, let's now that housekeeping is out of the way, take a look back at twenty twenty two. You know, I've been doing a lot of reflective urine review TV shows quick Plug. I will be on Simone Show on Christmas Eve at four pm on MSNBC. So if you are cooking and preparing for Christmas dinner and you want to still keep up on the news or watch her year in review, check

that out at four pm Eastern on Christmas Eve. I will also be joining did a wonderful pre tape which I'm really excited about, folks seeing with the Reverend Al Sharpton for his twelfth annual Reavie Awards, which will take place on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day at five pm Eastern. And if you don't want to watch it on the holiday, then just dbr it. But I will

be on your television on both of those days. So, as I've been doing these Year in reflection, I have been kind of thinking about my own, you know, year of reflection. What have I been through this year and for the past couple of years since COVID probably right, So since twenty twenty I have spent New Year's Eve in my wonderful apartment, saging, journaling, lighting candles, setting intentions, and it has been a really wonderful way to end

the year. I realized that in my youth, when I was younger, I wanted to be at every party, do everything. I've watched the ball drop in Times Square, I've gone to house parties, I've gone to big club parties. I've gone to sleepovers and hang out said you know, New Year's Eve for my entire life, even as a kid, was always a big deal. My grandparents used to throw you know, huge family parties and people would come in

from all over to their holiday parties. So New Year's Eve in my household, in my life has always played a major part. And I think that as I got older, and you know, we all went through this thing called a global health pandemic and slowed down a bit and started to ask ourselves, well, how do I really want to start the new year? Do I want to start it hungover and clinging to a toilet because I have imbibed too much the night before? Do I want to

start it out exhausted? And because of the last couple of years, you know, all of those big plans that that you're usually deciding in between, you know, weren't happening. And so I found myself on you know, one year, having a wonderful you know, early New Year's Eve lunch with one of my best friends and then you know, off to go do our own thing in the evening.

I have, you know, had wonderful dinners, early dinners with my sister because she would usually fly out to head back abroad on New Year's Eve, and so that had become our tradition. And I found myself really enjoying this solitude and kind of being with my thoughts and not alone. I mean, I'm facetiming all, you know, throughout after the ball drops, facetiming and connecting with people and wishing everyone well. But there is something if you do have the ability

to even entertain the idea. And I know many of you are parents or grandparents or caregivers, and so you probably don't have the opportunity to be in solitude, But if you do, even for an hour, even for an hour, not even the whole night, even for an hour, I mean, if it's before you're getting ready to go out and do your big New Year's Eve thing, take an hour to yourself, you know, clear the space out wherever you are, light a few candles, sit down in quiet or listening

to some type of meditative track or classical music or something whatever helps you get into the zone of just being at ease, being you know, equal at equilibrium, being in flow and not in a rush. In quieting your mind and really reflect and find, let's say, five things to be grateful for that happened in twenty twenty two to you personally. Could be, you know, things with work. It could be things with home. It could be I

kept my plant alive all year. It could be I cooked something different that I never cooked before, or I called that person instead of waiting for them to call me. But think of five things to be grateful for for the year and then set your intention, because you know, folks, regardless of how the year actually twenty twenty three shapes up and we don't know right but regardless of what is happening on the outside, because we know that there will be turmoil and we know that there will be pain.

We know that there will be more historic political events, in historic cateshy strophic storms. We know that there'll be more death. We know that they'll be more anxiety. You can't control everything that is happening around you, but the things that you can control is what is happening inside

of you. And the gift that I have received over the last couple of years is really being able to be more focused on how I am feeling about a thing, what my perception is about something that is happening, The ability to disrupt old records that are playing in the back of our minds that are telling us that we need to be doing more or producing this, or we are not worthy of rest, or why am I taking a nap and recognize that. You know, I believe that it was Gandhi, you know who said that if you

really want to change the world, start with yourself. And I find that those things, those kind of cliche quotes or things that affirmations that people say, they're really true. They're based in a lot of facts that if you really do want to see changes in the world, then

start to model that. Because what I have found and what we all know, is that marinating in the madness telling ourselves that we're not deserving of rest, that we're only worth what we can produce, never getting off of that treadmill, beating ourselves up for the littlest things doesn't

serve us. You know, I joked with a friend the other day and I said that if calling myself every name in the book every time that my weight goes up and down and up and down, if being mean to myself was the key to being thin, than I would be a supermodel. Right if beating myself up for not fitting into the right dress or the right size at the right time, in the right moment, pressuring myself to say, well, oh my god, I'm going to see these people in two weeks, so I must lose twenty

five pounds in two weeks. If that were helpful, then it would have worked by now, right, And I just use that as one example. The point is that the world is mean enough, the world is angry enough. The world, if you allow it, will kick your ass up and down the street, unrelenting. It is the loving of ourselves and allowing that love to really grow, to really root in us that allows us to have the light and

the enter to love up on those around us. And then through that love, through that piece, through that light, we make cracks into the darkness. Right, we find some light in the tunnel. That we find ourselves in at times. And no, it is in the oncoming train, right. It is growing that light that we allow to get dimmed throughout the year, dimmed and dimmed by other people's outside opinions,

by their expectations. That sometimes by the time that we get to this time of year, we're exhausted and overrun with obligations, grief. You know, the end of the year is not always happy for people. It is just yet another stress or another thing that they have to do. And so I say to you, shift the narrative. Give yourself back some peace, give yourself back some gratitude from making it through this year, because frankly, too many people

did not. Whether it were celebrities that we lost tragically, whether it was family members that you lost abruptly, or loved ones or pets. They call it the present because it really is a gift. And I also find that reflection is a gift. Not the turning over our shoulders and saying well I should have and I could have in all of that, No, but deep reflection that is

actually rooted in gratitude. For me, the last couple of years, in building my own gratitude practice, I can't express to you how much it has really fundamentally changed my life because things that used to send me into a downward spiral of just darkness and despair. Now I have the power to disrupt that thought and ask myself, is that real? Is that true? We always speak and I just used it in absolutes, the always and the never. But our

stories that we tell ourselves are they true? Or is it a matter of shifting our perspective of having gratitude for what is inside us and what is around us? Is that really the truth? Is that what meant matters? And I think that reflection and the ability to pause and again, even if it is just even if you don't have an hour, if it is a few minutes of being intentional, of breathing, of reflecting, of honoring yourself and how far you've come this year, give that gift

to yourself. Because I think that this life train, y'all this spinning. You know, what would we cover that scientists had said that the Earth is now spinning faster this year, right because of climate change. Things aren't slowing down. And so if we're waiting for everything around us to slow down, rather than taking a queue from our exhaustion and slowing

ourselves down, then we're not really listening. And I think that the opportunity to pause, to listen, to reflect is indeed a privilege, because there are a lot of people that don't have the time for that, that literally can't. Every second of every day is accounted for to somebody

else other than themselves. And so if you do find yourself actually being able to shut down between Christmas and New Year's, being able to spend time that you want to spend time with family and friends, chosen family and friends as well, make sure to make some time for yourself.

What I'm thinking this year is that I am going to I'm not going to commit to journaling every day, but I am going to commit to writing down my thoughts of how I'm feeling at the end of this year on New Year's and what my hopes are in what I hope to manifest in twenty twenty three, my hopes for myself and my hopes for the world. And I want to check in with those thoughts every couple of months, not as a well you need to do this, but just as a moment to say, did I accomplish

what it was that I set out to do. Am I closer or have I changed my goals altogether? And being nimble and allowing myself the ability to do that. But I think it's important, particularly as time just seems to move faster, to really take pauses, write things down, do a voice diary, and mark the moments because they are fleeting. So my wish for all of you as we mark this new year is more groundedness, more peace,

and more joy. That is about not what we can produce, but just steeped in who we are, finding things that really do give us a spark, give us a light, and doing more of that, and stumbling through the process of finding what those things are and enjoying being in the present and not as I said, and I have said to my girlfriend, not future casting, right, because manifestation is not about future casting. It's about setting your intentions. You know, the past is done, the present is happening,

in the future is unknown. We can still desire and have desires for things that are we hope to come. But I find that I prefer to manifest than hope because manifesting, to me requires more action and intention. And so I wish for all of you the ability to manifest your intentions and the space to do that, and the care that it takes, the self care that it

takes in order to make that happen. So, dear friends, now, with the minutes that we have left, I want to think about you know, I do this and I'm sure many of you do this too, with your family and friends. I like to do roses and thorns, right, the roses and thorns of the year, And we're going to do this the political style, the roses and thorns of this year,

because my God, so much has happened. And I you know, I'm one of those people that do love watching all the year in review shows because so much happens that you actually forget, and it's good to be reminded all of the times that we thought that we were not going to get through, that we were not going to get to the other side, that we did. And I think that that's one of the powerful things about years in review. So roses and thorns, because chronologically I will

never remember all of the things that have happened. A thorn of twenty twenty two was the overturning of Rob Wade fifty years of precedent, a woman and people with Uterus's bodily autonomy just gone. And I have admonished people for not taking to the streets and staying in the streets in the way frankly that the Iranian women and young people are in order to make it known that they will not be overrun be told what they can and cannot do. That was a real thorn of the year.

To state it mildly, the Rose mid term elections. The polsters were wrong again. There was no red fucking wave. There wasn't even a red drip. Americans, particularly gen Z, people of color, black women, did the work that needed to be done and showed up at the polls in mass Why because democracy. He was on the line. Their lives were on the line. And while mainstream media wanted us to believe that, oh no, it's just the economy and people only care about their gas tank. No, no,

people actually care about democracy. The election deniers did not win office in the way that they wanted to. Donald Trump does not have the Midas touch. As a matter of fact, everything that he touches turns into a lawsuit or shit. So that is the highlight that there is

still a spark in all of us. The fight in all of us to hold on to our democracy, and I hope that it continues, because I will tell you that the push for authoritarianism and fascism hasn't gone away and hasn't eased up, and neither can we another thorn climate change run amok. We saw three quarters of Pakistan underwater. We have seen extreme weather across this country. In Nigeria, in remote places, in close places, every single storm and

fire was historic. And the rose in that is that I think that people are starting to wake up and realize that climate change is in something that is impending, it is actually happening. And it's one of the reasons why Generations Z came out in mass for midterm elections because they're like, we're inheriting this planet that you all are turning into a fucking trash heap. And there is no debate with our generation about whether or not it exists.

It's like, how long is it going to take you all to get the fuck out of the way so we can actually do something about it? So that to me is a rose a thorn. So many mass shootings, so many mass shootings from Buffalo to Uvaldi to Club Q and to the countless countless shootings in between. America is sick. America has an obscene addiction to guns to violence. The Rose. President Biden pass gun safety legislation. Gun safety legislation hasn't been passed in this country for decades. Do

I think that it went far enough? No? I don't. Did it ban assault rifles? No it didn't. It did some things, and so for that you get a rose. America's infrastructure crumbling so many ways, Thorn, And guess what. The infrastructure is only going to get beaten down more

by what? Climate change? The Rose. The Biden administration did what the Trump administration said they were going to do but never did, which was actually pass an infrastructure bill that will begin to reshape this country and make investments right into smart technology, green technology, sustainable energies. So for that,

get a rose. Donald Trump. Thorn has continued his crime spree against to America, ending the year with selling NFTs which are now funny enough losing value, as is Donald Trump. So that makes sense. And another thorn is will Merritt Garland do what he needs to do? The Rose being the January sixth Bipartisan Committee did they laid out with ten hearings a million plus documents, hundreds of interviews. Donald Trump knew what he was doing. This wasn't an accident.

January sixth wasn't an accident. It was planned. It was premeditated and done so at the behest of the criminal in chief, who wanted to thwart the will of the people and overturn a free and fair election. I can think of no greater crime than to not prosecute Donald Trump. I don't even care if they lose. Want them to try, because the trying will say more about this country than ignoring it all together. Folks, there were so many ups and downs, and you know, we got a little air

back in our sales with the midterm elections. No, we didn't keep the House, but they didn't really gain the House either. Anything can happen to five members of Congress just saying, and it has in the past, and so their margin of victory yes, very slim. What I believe, dear friends, is that America is and has been, at a crossroads. It needs to reckon with its past in order to understand its present and chart its future. Whether

or not we actually do that, I don't know. But what I have said before, unwokeapp is that I've let go of my ego in this work. I've let go of the belief that I'm going to see all of the freedoms and the rights and the perfection of this union that I want to see in my lifetime. But the work that I am doing, that each of us are doing, with the platforms that we have created and that have been provided for us, is to move that needle,

is to bend that arc even further. And so I wish for you all at the end of this year, rest restoration, rejuvenation, so that we can continue the work together to secure and to fortify our democracy for generations

to come. I can't thank you all enough for allowing me to do what it is I believe that I am called to do, which is to be a messenger, which is to use the platform that I have by virtue of you all tuning in each and every day, following me, tweeting at me, listening to the show, sharing the shows, giving me the energy to do the work that I believe that I was called to do, which is wake people up to their power and to their purpose. And once they are woke, then they will take their

energy to wake up more people. If all of us right decide that it is our jobs to educate those. Once we become educated, to activate those. Once we become activated, Then I believe that we will make it that we will win. And what does winning look like. It looks like a secure democracy. It looks like children and adults being able to live free in their skin. It looks like people being able to love and declare that love

to whomever, wherever. It looks like bodily autonomy. It looks like the best person getting the job, not the person with the most connections and the greatest wealth. It looks like being able to rest while also having the ability to provide for yourself and for those that you love. It looks like being and receiving love and sharing love. Thank you all for an amazing twenty twenty two. I will see you all in the new year. As always, Power to the people and to all the people. Power,

Get woke and stay woke as fuck. Happy holidays, friends,