This video was so beautiful it brought tears to my eyes, even though I claim not be a big crier (actually I wept at Forrest Gump last week too, so maybe I’m kidding myself.) But seriously, I challenge you not to be moved by how wonderful and uplifting this video is.
It got me thinking. What have we achieved in 2011? What have I achieved? I LOVE New Year celebrations, because I like to reflect on my achievements from the last twelve months and get excited about the twelve to come. I’ve had a great year and I hope you have too!
I have pulled together a few of the most incredible stories from across the globe throughout 2011 to share with you what an incredible world we live in. I hope you read about hope and love, breakthroughs, achievements and triumphs. I also hope you can reflect on your 2011 and remember the good times, take what you’ve learned from your challenges and get excited for all the possibilities that 2012 brings.
News
In June 2011 the former Presidents of Ghana & Brazil both won the World Food Prize. The prize was established in the 1980s by a Nobel Peace Prize winner to recognise those who have increased the quality, quantity or availability of food in the world. Both Presidents have achieved incredible success in their respective countries: in 1991 one third of Ghana’s population was suffering from extreme hunger, but under President Kufuor’s guidance by 2008 those numbers dropped to 9%. In Brazil between 2003 and 2009 President Lula da Silva set out to ensure that all citizens would eat three meals a day and in doing so saw child malnutrition fall by 62%.
In a country where so few of our population suffer from lack of food we find it hard to grasp the daily reality of others’ every day struggles for a gift we often take for granted. The efforts of both Presidents to ensure a better future for their people are inspiring and for me the deserved recognition they have received for their work is definitely a highlight of 2011.
Music
I have already admitted my undying love for Beyonce, so my musical highlight of 2011 should come as NO surprise to you. It is of course Beyonce’s headline set on the Pyramid stage at Glastonbury this June. Her performance made her the first woman in twenty years to headline the festival. She electrified the stage with her performance, silencing all her critics. My favourite song of the night was her rendition of ‘Beautiful People’ by Prince into ‘Sex of Fire’ by Kings of Leon. Here’s the video clip for you to relive the magic…
Technology
Sarah Churman is a 29 year old woman from Texas who was born deaf. Throughout her whole life she relied on reading lips and, to a very limited extent, hearing aids which provided some but very imperfect sound. In July of this year, she received Envoy Medical’s Esteem Implant, which utilizes ear drum vibrations to allow its users to hear. The cost of the implant is $30, 000 for one ear. To raise money for the implant Sarah and her husband had even considered selling their organs on the black market. They were saved from this by her mother-in-law’s generous offer of clearing out her retirement fund to fund the implant. The implant was a great success and below is a video clip of her emotional reaction to hearing clearly for the first time in 29 years. This is definitely a technological revolution of 2011 and her overwhelming joy at finally being able to hear her own voice is something we can all recognise as a reason to celebrate the last 12 months.
Sport
Another story I feel that gives us a reason to celebrate 2011 is the account of South African runner Oscar Pistorius. At only 11 months Pistorius had both legs amputated from the knee down. Throughout school he was involved in numerous sports but suffered a serious rugby injury in June 2003. As part of his rehabilitation process he became involved in running and it was here his abilities really shone. Only four years later he became a world champion in three different events (100m, 200m and 400m), but was ruled to have an advantage over other able-bodied athletes and was disqualified from competing in able- bodied competitions (his running is due to the use of Cheetah flex foot carbon fibre artificial limbs). In July of this year Pistorius qualified for the 2011 World Championships and 2012 Olympics. His motto ‘you are not disabled by the disabilities you have, you are able by the abilities you have’ is an inspiration to us all. The phenomenal success he has achieved this year in persevering until his goals were reached, regardless of the tremendous obstacles he has faced, is for me one of the greatest inspirational stories of 2011.
These stories are just a tiny collection of some of the truly extraordinary and inspiring achievements that have happened throughout 2011. I hope you can look back over the last twelve months and be grateful to be a part of this incredible world.
I hope it’s made you excited for the year ahead, after this year, who knows what we can achieve in 2012?