Hop! Hop! Hop! Or should it be splash, splash, splash… a new sunrise, a new hope. 2023 is the Year of the Water Rabbit, and it is a year of hope, after the exit of the furious Tiger.

The Rabbit may be less spectacular than the Tiger, but it has qualities all its own. The sign of the Rabbit is a symbol of longevity, peace, and prosperity in Chinese Astrology. Yes!! We could all do with more peace and prosperity.

The Water Rabbit also symbolizes patience and luck, which would also mean that the Year of the Rabbit will bring what we have lacked in 2022: peace and success! Perhaps, also less anger and frustration, and more relaxation.

The year of the Rabbit starts with New Year’s Eve on January 22, with the first New Moon after the winter solstice. This marks the beginning of the Chinese New Year celebrations.

The influence of the Rabbit will temper those who are too impulsive or those with their heads in the clouds, so think twice before acting and you may manage to fulfill all your plans.

People born under the sign of the Rabbit are calm, decisive, and not prone to panic.

No matter what sign we may have been born under, we can all decide to live the proper way and do the right thing.

We all make our own choices; most of the time, but do not always gets the exact results expected. In fact, the choices we make today often decide our destiny.

Train your mind to see the good in everything: positivity is a choice. Happiness in life depends on the quality of your thoughts.

Take a quiet walk with Mother Nature; this will nurture your mind, body, and soul. Fortunately, Ottawa offers lots of trails to explore quietly.

Life is actually quite simple, but our feelings, preferences, biases, and pre-conceived ideas often make things complicated. The happiest people don’t always have the best of everything… they just make the best of everything they have.

For example, if you live in Ottawa and you do not like the snow, you may miss out or have less joy in your life, but there will still be the same amount of snow and it will be just as cold.

Happiness is your own responsibility, just like the sign on the summer beach that reads, "No Life Guard on Duty. Children are Your Responsibility". Don’t expect others to make you happy or you will be disappointed.

We all want to be happy and enjoy freedom. But what are happiness and freedom? They both come with responsibilities, such as not causing harm to others or to Mother Earth, our home!

Let’s be inclusive rather than exclusive or restrictive. The more we share, the more we all have, with enough for all.

Everything is temporary: emotions, thoughts, people, and even landscapes. Do not become attached, just flow with it.

Faith is like a candle in a dark room: it does not reveal everything at once, but gives enough light for the next step. That's why repetition, advice, and correction have to be repeated, so be patient in your learning.

And just as the moon is reflected clearly by water that is still, so our world is perceived as it is by a mind that is calm. Be like water, my friends.

Smilingly moving forward!

hl