There’s an old movie where the truth-seeking detective asks the corrupt and grasping old man what he wants to buy that he can’t already afford.
“The future,” the old man replies.
Despite what’s been plastered on social media, 2016 was decidedly not the “worst year ever.”
But that’s not to say it was good.
We witnessed terror attacks, B.C.’s overdose epidemic, and the political triumph of xenophobia in Europe and North America. We lost a Canadian poet who delved into dark matters and an astronomer who helped quantify the universe’s dark matter.
But we’re still here.
While there’s some debate, the worst year in human history likely took place some 74,000 years ago when the Toba volcano erupted.
A veil of dust hung over the sun as the supervolcano belched ash in every direction.
The human population dwindled to a few thousand, pushing our resourceful ancestors to the brink of extinction.
But we’re still here, and as long as we continue to evolve, we’ll still be here – even if here ends up being somewhere else.
And maybe we should also be cognizant that amid the horrors of 2016 the North Shore was home to displays of honesty and kindness. Despite the stratospheric costs of living, residents who found stacks of money always seemed to go searching for rightful owners. We saw people line up – literally line up – to offer stem cells to an ailing RCMP volunteer.
When the chimes sound this Saturday, remember to be hopeful, and remember there’s at least one thing the corrupt and intolerant will never control.
The future.
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