The year of our Lord 2025 is drawing to a close, and we have already waited with bated breath for Christmas. That season of giving, forgiveness and sacrifice. As you read last week, some of us suffered losses, and we are still working on the journey of healing from that searing pain of losing a loved one. My sister Maryanne Asuku née Amodu did not join us for Christmas. We accept the will of God and ask for his mercy upon her and strength for the family she left behind.
The rest of the journey is for us who are here, who make decisions as they affect others, who build relationships or break them, who love or destroy, or who put a smile on others’ faces. Last Sunday, the Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, His Grace, Archbishop Kaigama, visited my church and parish, bringing his many pastoral blessings upon us parishioners. It was a beautiful mass. One of his most important comments during his homily was that every one of us should be a gift to someone during the festive season. Charity is one of the greatest virtues of the Christian religion, as it is for other faiths. Practised religiously, poverty would be minimised. Unfortunately, charity in the physical world is few and far between. Ostentatious living by very few in our society has opened up bitterness and deep-seated anger from the larger section of society. Resentment on the lips of those looking for a job for years and those just struggling to make ends meet. It has been a great year for many but a tough one for most. So, how are you ending this year and starting 2026?
Let us begin with charity.
Charity in its ordinary form means physical giving: food, money, support, water, and other such related items. But it also means time, a shoulder to cry on, a listening ear, and volunteering. How much of it did you do this year? More often than not, your spirit is lifted because, trust me, giving always uplifts you, no matter to whom you give. Family and friends are great, but nothing beats delivering to people you do not know. It is the best giving ever. Giving to total strangers.
My late mother, the irreplaceable Mrs Josephine Amodu, used to say it’s also important to be charitable to others. Do not destroy people’s characters.
Character assassination is a now and present danger where your greatest sport is mauling down other people, chewing them for lunch to make you feel better. This is not good for you. Drop it in 2025 and leave it behind so you can rise. You know, in the course of my life, I have met the strangest of people. People who would describe me in less than stellar words, who would say, ‘Ah, you don’t know Eugenia.’ She is this and that and that. We went to school together. She is terrible. One, I have never heard their names in my space, never met them, and guess what, I have never been to Zamfara. If this is you, please drop this at the end of the year. It does not augur well for you. What do you gain by destroying other people? The law of Karma is powerful. Please be careful. And truly, when the holy books say, ‘Do not touch my anointed,’ it’s not a fluke. Change your ways as I pray for you.
Then there are those who would run you out of town based on a conversation you never had. Something is clearly wrong.
Let us guard our tongues in 2026 and speak only when it adds value.
So, how is your kindness quotient? It’s hard, really, to show kindness when we are having a hard time.
But the best of us rise above hardship, trauma, and sadness and provide kindness anyway. These are our heroes and heroines of 2025 and will remain so in 2026. It’s very hard not to project your past trauma or someone’s meanness onto an innocent subordinate when you get to a position of authority. But you must always remember how you felt in the workplace when someone was mean to you for no reason and vow never to visit it on anyone. But this is not always the case.
Many years ago, I had a boss who would simply not promote me. I felt it in my bones. I worked hard, and my work-life balance suffered. I felt betrayed by this boss, whom I thought could see me break my back for the establishment. He promoted laggards instead, his best friends, his girlfriends, girlfriends to his best friends or their wives, and people from his ethnic region. It was a difficult period in my life. There were celebrations all around me, but I had no joy. He told whoever cared to listen that he did not get promoted himself for several years. I was flabbergasted. Projection. Perpetuation of meanness when you have been given the opportunity to break a meanness chain. When you treat people badly, you diminish them, but if they serve God truly, they more often than not rise, and you are diminished.
As you bring 2025 to an end, you will do well to check your deceit temperature. How high was it in 2025? Lying that you are at A when, in fact, you are at Q. Wallowing in delusions of grandeur. Oh, I am doing quite well when, in fact, you are at the bottom of the ladder. Cheating on your wife or husband. Lying to yourself and your family. Living in bondage. Living large when, in fact, everything you have is borrowed. Throwing people under the bus while committing worse crimes. Is this how you want to enter 2026? Who is that girl you have kept on the leash for eight years, using her as a cook and sex slave and not making a good woman of her? Who is that man you are deceiving, calling him your darling and refusing to commit, when in fact, you have a full sugar daddy on the side? 2026 should be your year of change. Same to you. Run, girl, run, boy. There are consequences. Trust me, and no one stays young. The evening of your years would become painful and lonely. You may make some money, but for how long?
But let’s exit the church and talk about everyday kindnesses. A smile to a stranger, a penny to a beggar (not the commercial beggars, if you know what I mean), food to your security, kindness to your driver, a grieving colleague, a shoulder, and an ear to the many broken people in our world.
As you espouse kindness to others, remember to shed light on yourself. Be gentle with yourself. Stop saying, “I know I can do better. When you need to slow down, stop saying ‘just this last job’ when your body is tired. Stop postponing the holiday. Take a break. Many people slumped and died. Look after yourself; give yourself a break. It’s your body; it’s an engine. Oil it, eat well, and take care of your health.
In the meantime, set reliable and achievable goals for 2026. Don’t put yourself under pressure by saying I would buy a car this year when you have no discernible plan to make money. Don’t say I will marry this year when, in fact, you have not discussed it with God or are not even intentional and are not in the right circles. It’s easy to marry the wrong woman or man.
If I have rambled a bit, it’s because as the year closes, we are attacked by so many unfinished goals, deep thoughts, and sometimes regret. But it’s okay. 2026 would be better.
Throw out the past, which has negatives in it, grab hold and deepen the good, and take a break where you can. Trust in a higher power. Be intentional as your year powers to a start. Have faith; be present when opportunities come.
Don’t do drugs… Don’t be defined by your 2025 mistakes. Rise above them. Forgive yourself. We all had doses of mistakes. You are not alone. Be ready for 2026.
I wish you a truly successful 2026. A loud Amen to that.
