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The New Year may be just another number on the calendar, but in a way it is also more than that. For example, New Year resolutions may be becoming more and more common among Thais but people do not have to wait until the coming of a new year to make a vow to do something good. In fact you can make a resolution whenever you like, whether April, August or November, as long as one is committed to keeping it.

 Nevertheless, there is something special about the passing of an old year and the welcoming of a new one, as people can reflect upon the changing calendar and can take the opportunity to assess their achievements and failures, strengths and flaws, vices and virtues, over the past 12 months. Instead of spending inordinate hours partying, drinking and gorging themselves, people might do well to reflect quietly upon the past year as well as the new year and set goals for the next 12 months coming upon them.

 They may also do well to consider how fleeting life is. In becoming increasingly aware of the transitory nature of human existence, people may let themselves cling less to things and what may not truly matter, and care more for others, the environment and what truly matters. It may let us recognise that, after all, joy and happiness are not just about material affluence or being with loved ones, but also about thinking and caring for the unknown others whom we pass on the streets, in rural areas, as well as outside Thailand, who may be in need and whose names we may not know.

 The passing of the old year is also a good and appropriate time to forgive those who have trespassed against you and seek forgiveness from those you have offended. It is also a chance to reflect upon the failing of yourself to live up to your higher expectations and responsibilities.

 These things may not be featured at countdown parties and can't compete in brilliance with New Year fireworks but they surely are more glorious than any pyrotechnic show can bring to our hearts as human beings.

 Without a sense of time, without a beginning and an end, without the past and the future, people often lose track of themselves. We must pause every now and then to both look behind us to our past and look ahead to our future to get a sense of where we are and what direction we ought to be taking.

Pausing to reflect is thus an indispensable part of the rich journey that is life and part of what makes life meaningful, coherent, comprehensible - and worth living. By looking ahead, we can also feel a sense of hope and aspiration for things yet to be achieved as we arrange ourselves within the microcosm of our changing time and place.