Harmony.

That’s how I’ll remember 2014.  Maybe I was just due for a good year, but truth be told, 90 percent of my stress over the past 12 months could really be called sympathy/empathy at things going on in the world around me.

On a personal level, it feels like I’ve taken a huge step forward in claiming the part of my destiny where I’m this ‘Muslim Zen Master’ (for lack of a better term.)  Have I had 365 peaceful days in a row?  Of course not.  But taking a moment to look back, most of my memories are of cracking jokes, admiring (spiritually and physically) beautiful women, watching and talking and making movies and plays with people who share the same passions.  That’s really what it boils down to; this feels like a year where a majority of my time was spent doing things I was passionate about in one way or another.  The House of Aziz is definitely in order.

‘America’ continues to force my hand though.  It’s interesting (to put it mildly) to watch what’s going on in the world.  We all talk about ‘what we would have done’ if we lived in a different era, but there’s a genuine thing that’s happening right now.  And where do you (or I) fit into it?  I know people who are in the streets, potentially risking their lives for the Cause.  I know people who are a little more subtle in their public stances, but do a lot behind closed doors.  I’ve seen people who are so entrenched in their place in the status quo that it seems like they’re fighting against their own self-interests.   Like I said, it’s all interesting…

Alright, the Zen Master is ‘reflected’ out.  In this moment, I’m grateful and thankful.  To my family who hold me down through everything.  To my friends and colleagues with whom I’ve locked myself into this ‘Make Me Laugh’ deathmatch that really feels like it will go on until we keel over.  To my actor and writer and director friends who do good work and stroke my ego in a friendly competition, ‘I can do that!’ kind of way.  To the kids coming up behind me who seem desperate for answers, and all I can really say is, ‘I’m doing the best I can to make things easier for you than I had it.’

(Hm.  I really didn’t mean to end on a somber note…)

(I know!  Let’s go backwards one more time to what I FINALLY knocked off my bucket list on my last birthday!)

COME ON FUZZBALL!!! LET’S GET OUT OF HERE!!! SEE YOU LAMES IN 2015!!!

(chuckling as I put on my 3D glasses, jump into my Interstellar space craft, and leave this hemisphere for the next 2 weeks…)