New Year's Vision for 2019: KangAi Commune Still Has No Grand Plans

In a few hours we step into 2019. May 2019 will be KangAi Commune's eighth anniversary, so it is a fairly significant year. But to members' disappointment, in the new year KangAi Commune still has no grand plans; everything will continue to advance in an orderly way, according to our understanding of mutual aid and of the stage of development mutual aid has reached, unswayed by outside forces.

2018 was a year of high tide for mutual aid. A few years ago mutual aid was still widely questioned; now it is booming. In such an environment it is hard not to be disturbed or buffeted, and hard to keep from becoming restless. But precisely at such times we must remind ourselves not to stray, and not to let short-term competition shake the foundations of long-term sustainability.

We must still be patient. When an industry is emerging and prospering everywhere, that tends to conceal problems, as has happened in many industries. Enduring solitude, thinking about essentials, and advancing steadily is the right course, because this undertaking is too different—members and their families cannot bear the risks of wild swings, and we must be responsible for that.

To meet the turbulent external challenges, we should also return to ourselves and to the Commune's founding purpose. When something goes wrong at some point, it must be that we have erred in carrying out that purpose. Only by deeply understanding the founding purpose can we find our own direction.

What we have pioneered and held to must be something with long-term vitality. Our creativity has already been proven. As long as we do not waver in our original purpose and keep pushing innovation, there is still broad room ahead. The goal of a Century Commune is both a responsibility to members and a confidence in our own vitality and values.

What's more, with the support of so many enthusiastic members in so many places, what reason could there be not to persevere?

The new year is about to arrive. I wish the Commune a calm 2019, and I wish members health and peace in 2019.