YEAR OF HOPE

The year 2007 has just left us, and we are now in 2008. Happy New Year! Of course, during the previous year, each of us had definitely experienced good and bad things in life either as a person or nation. A few days before the going of 2007, flash floods, mudslides, and wild weather again hit some parts of Java, Sumatra, and Kalimantan islands. A few hundreds of our brothers and sisters died, and many more became homeless. However, we are not the only less fortunate nation on earth to some extent. The Pakistanis, for example, have been facing the worst part of their history as nation. Following the Desember 27th's assassination of Benazir Bhutto, social unrest gripped the country. This political turmoil has created more uncertainties for Pakistan's future, but they have never lost their self-confidence as a great nation. Yes, we keep moving with high self-esteem though we know that the only certainty in 2007 is the "change". For the people of Queensland, the recent celebration of New Year's Eve was not as glamorous as that of last year due to the rain, strong wind, and big wave. But this difference has also brought them good news. The good news is that their dams have been filled with rainwater so that the long drought that has gripped the lives of everything on the state will soon end. Happy New Year!