I think the important thing now is to have a celebration and then with determination move into our common, sha... — Michael D. Higgins

I think the important thing now is to have a celebration and then with determination move into our common, shared, different future. Michael D.

Author: Michael D. Higgins

Insight: There's something wise about pausing to acknowledge what you've accomplished before sprinting toward what's next. We're usually terrible at this—we cross a finish line and immediately obsess over the next mountain to climb. But Higgins is pointing at something real: that moment of recognition actually matters. It steadies you. It reminds you that effort gets results, that change is possible. Without it, you just end up exhausted. The second part is trickier, though. He's talking about moving forward into a "different future"—one that's shared but also genuinely different. That's not the same as compromise or splitting the difference. It's acknowledging that the future won't look like the past, and that's okay. It has to change because circumstances have changed, because people have changed. The determination he mentions isn't about dragging everyone back to what they know. It's about having the courage to build something new together, even when none of you are entirely sure what it'll look like. This hits differently in our current moment, when so much public conversation is about stopping the other side rather than creating something together. Real change requires both celebration and a genuine willingness to be surprised by what comes next.