We face a troubling future until humanity can unite around sustainable practices for the planet. Those of us who are older have long envisioned a time when people work together. So far, instead of the cooperation our planet needs, we witness a rash of propaganda and hate.

To look into the future, let’s look into the past — The I Ching or Book of Changes. The ancient oracle consists of sixty-four hexagrams, or scenes, each containing six lines. The lines show us the positive and negative attitudes people take as they play out their part in the scene. The I Ching dates back thousands of years, and people have studied it for centuries to learn the best attitudes to take in a given situation. To this day in Daoist temples, people throw their I Ching with sticks or coins, and then they consult the monks for their reading.

To find the most productive attitudes for the changes in 2020, I selected three hexagrams: Life’s Trials (hexagram 29), the Strong Trying to Obstruct the Weak (hexagram 12), and Reverence (hexagram 20).

Life’s Trials Ahead