As we near the end of 2025 and prepare for the start of 2026, it’s good to take a moment to reflect on what’s been going on around us and think about what may lie ahead in the new year.
2025 was chaotic in so many ways. The norms of our global economic structure were turned upside down due to the tariffs and trade wars introduced by the US administration. This has had a major impact on Canada, on Canadian businesses and on Canadian citizens. There is a profound sense that many are feeling the economic impacts on a personal level. This influences our individual decisions about how we spend our financial resources – and our time – which in turn can impact our own Probus Club. A significant number of members decided to not renew in 2025 – some because of relocation and some for health and personal reasons. Our membership fell to 85 from our pre-Covid level of about 120, and we were facing some major problems.
So, when facing difficulties, what can we do? This is when we need to be creative and come up with strategies that help us cope with the situation and work to turn things around. This is called resilience. The best definition of resilience that I could find is provided by the American Psychological Association:
“Resilience: The process and outcomes of successfully adapting to difficult or challenging life experiences, especially through mental, emotional and behavioral flexibility and adjustment to external and internal demands.”
We are not born with resilience – it is a learned behaviour that is based upon four specific skills: positive thinking, solving problems, accepting failure and self-compassion. (google.com)
It seems, that in these times, we need resilience more than ever, in order to cope with the many unexpected turn of events we have been experiencing. We can’t control what happens to us, but we do have the ability to determine how we choose to react to what happens to us. As we work to develop plans and strategies to deal with what is going on in our world, it is critical to stay focused on what we ultimately want to achieve, stay on course despite all the distractions and don’t give up as we work to improve our situation.
This is the challenge that we face individually, within our club and within our nation. Others all over the world are facing similar undesired situations. The key question is: “What do I have to do today to cope and to adapt in order to improve the current situation?”
While things may appear dismal at times, it doesn’t take much for us to realize that others in the world – in Ukraine, in Sudan or in Gaza for instance – are facing conditions much more serious than our own. We are fortunate to live in one of the best countries in the world, where there are many opportunities for building a rewarding life.
This is what we can use to look forward into 2026. We have both hope and the opportunity to use the coping skills of resilience to deal with the current adversities that lie ahead and manage our way towards a good outcome on the other side. With the dawn of a new year, we have the opportunity to make improvements in our own lives, in our club and in our nation, depending on how we choose to react to what happens around us. Let’s focus on making the most of what life wants to throw at us. May 2026 be a happy and rewarding year for all of us!!
“It’s your reaction to adversity, not adversity itself, that determines how your life story will develop.”
Dieter F. Uchtdorf
Jim McKinlay