--Lyric from “Blink of an Eye” by Ann and Roger McNamee
We were not sorry to tear the last leaf off the 2008 calendar.
Although there were times of joy and blessing, it is not a year that we expect to recall with nostalgia. What we will recall is Adelaide’s fall down the stairs, resulting in severe injuries, followed by my summer of weaknesses from blood loss after surgery and bypass surgery for three clogged arteries. (And we, along with millions of Americans, saw the value of our life savings erode dramatically.)
So, we are ready to move on.
There are no do overs except in kids’ games. We all know intellectually that our lives don’t have chapters that coincide neatly with the months and volumes that correspond to the year.
We awoke on the morning of Jan. 1 the same people who went to bed on Dec. 31, carried along on the current of everything that has gone before. Adelaide is still recovering the injuries suffered in her fall, and I am still recovering from the bypass surgery. And who knows what the new year will bring.
Let’s face it, though. That brand new calendar inevitably invites us to evaluate where we are and to make new plans.
I learned long ago that New Year’s resolutions tend have a larger element of wish than resolve.
But there is one resolution that I happily will renew: I will try to recognize that each day is a gift to be appreciated and savored.
The writer can be contacted at billatthelake@gmail.com
