Predicting the outcome
Twenty-twenty-four has begun, and many of us are wondering where this year will take us, and some are afraid to look. What do we expect this year? Will the Russia/Ukraine war end? Will the Israel/Hamas Gaza war end? This is a presidential election year. Will President Joe Biden be re-elected, or will former President Trump or independent Robert Kennedy Jr take the bid? Will groceries keep going up? All these questions, but does anybody have the ability to look into the future?
The Russia/Ukraine and Israel/Hamas wars are highlighted in the news every day. You may read about it online or listen to a podcast if you missed it on the daily news channels. Russia invaded Ukraine on February 22, 2022. It was the largest attack on a European country since World War II. It was the escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War that started in 2014. I remember when Russia attacked Ukraine in 2022, and I remember when Gaza attacked Israel in October 2023. All I could think about was all the innocent families, children, and elderly being in the middle of this awful atrocity.
Voltaire, a French philosopher and writer, once said, “Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.” War will always be; we can all be manipulated in one way or another, but the only peace that passes all understanding is what we personally receive from God. As many of us do, I pray for peace. But for those in the middle of the war in their countries, I pray for all the families.
The presidential election will be held on Tuesday, November 5, 2024. Many wonder how this election may turn out and if there will be another uproar like it was on Jan. 6, 2021, when rioters entered the United States Capital, vandalizing and looting parts of the building. We will all experience and hear much about the candidates in the coming months. But I encourage everyone to get out and vote their conscience for the person that you would like to be your president. Voting is a freedom that we don’t need to take lightly.
There is one thing that many think about a lot lately, and that is the cost of living. Will the cost of living increase this year? A big part of the cost of living is buying groceries. Food prices have climbed over the past two years thanks to the combination of inflation and the COVID-19 pandemic. However, according to the Consumer Price Index report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, food prices rose 2.9 percent between November 2022 and November 2023. The 12-month percentage change of the CPI table food was listed as 10.4 percent in December 2022, and in November 2023, is at 2.9 percent. It is slowly decreasing.
No one can predict what the future will be like for us. Every day has its own challenges and every day is never the same. Remember that every day is new day, and acknowledge the many blessings you receive.
Let’s try to live life to the fullest and to stay positive even though some days will be more challenging than others, but most of all, treat others as we would want to be treated.