And you ask me what I want this year
And I try to make this kind and clear
Just a chance that maybe we’ll find better days
Cuz I don’t need boxes wrapped in strings
And desire and love and empty things
Just a chance that maybe we’ll find better days

-Lyrics from “Better Days” by the Goo Goo Dolls

I’m sure like many Americans, you have been reading about the decline in retail sales, and even the recent news that not only are we spending less, but actually, for the first time in about 50 years, paying down debt. I guess this is a mixed bag for our country. On the one hand, it is bad news since our economy is so driven by consumerism. But on the other hand, it is good news that maybe, just maybe, we are examining our attachment to things, our culture and an economy based on spending. It just cannot be a good thing to have a national economy based on buying stuff and, worse, doing so on borrowed money. I, too, have gotten caught up in buying more things, getting attached to things, and then like most Americans, ending up throwing these things away resulting in an added consequence to our environment.

I think we must all be waking up as if it were the next morning after a wonderful party which involved too much eating and drinking. We have fond memories of the good times but are shocked at how unwell we ended up feeling the next day. I know that times are grim for many Americans now, but I have such hope that our personal sober reflection of how we ended up in this mess will bring us back to what is truly important in life. As you look around at all that you have accumulated, no matter how much or little you think you have accumulated, I wonder if you have the same thoughts that I do lately. None of it is really important, and I could live happily with just about all of it gone. What I know I cannot live happily without is my health, my family and my friends.

What is the true meaning of the Christmas season? Hope and renewal, not gifts, not buying more things. It is an opportunity to reflect on our values as a society and hope that we will all find renewal as a nation next year.

From our employees and myself at Cenpatico, we are wishing you the very warmest and joyful holiday season.

And, here’s to better days for all of us in 2009!

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