The year 2011 may have been a turbulent one when it comes to the economy and what not, but I don’t think we need a survey to tell us that as Canadians, we’re pretty fortunate in the grande scheme of things.

An Ipsos Reid Poll released on New Year’s Day says 74 per cent of those asked said 2011 was a good year for themselves and their families – 15 per cent said it was ‘very good’ and 59 per cent said it was ‘somewhat good.’ Only six per cent said it was very bad.

2011 was a year of change. “It was a year that featured, among other things, the re-election of Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper with a new majority government, the death of NDP leader Jack Layton shortly after leading his party to the status of official Opposition in its best election result ever, a violent riot in Vancouver after the Canucks lost in the Stanley Cup final and the Toronto Stock Exchange’s first yearly decline in three years.

“Internationally, European economies were devastated as governments there struggled with unsustainable debt levels, dictatorships in the Middle East were toppled by popular uprisings, and infamous figures such as Osama bin Laden and Muammar Gaddafi met their demise.”

“There’s been a lot of depressing news, things I shake my head at and wonder where we’re going in the world,” said one Ottawa resident.

From earthquakes, to joblessness, tsunamis, hunger and war – it’s all out there and I can’t think of a safer or more privileged country to call home than right here in Canada so I have to ask, why wouldn’t a poll turn out favorable?

We have our problems here, I’m not saying that we don’t. We have crime, we have homelessness, we too have hunger and corruption, but we’re also a land filled with opportunity and hope. There is help for those who reach out for it and the chance for change for those who truly want it.

With Christmas behind us and a new year underway maybe people (especially the six per cent who said things were ‘very bad’) need to start seeing the cup as half full rather than half empty. Stop trying to reach for EVERYTHING and start appreciating all that you DO have. Trash cans are lining the streets filled with what’s left of Christmas 2011. There’s so much excess and waste and a lack of appreciation for what really matters. It’s time for a shift in thinking and that starts with you and I.