A New Year

“It's New Year's Eve,

and hopes are high

Dance one year in,

kiss one goodbye

Another chance, another start

So many dreams to tease the heart”

These are some of the words from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s ‘The Perfect Year’ from the musical ‘Sunset Boulevard’. There is a kind of magic about the way our calendars work. Every day the sun sets and we can begin afresh the next day as the sun rises. Each year we can kiss the previous year goodbye and make promises to ourselves about how things will change in the year to come. 

I only just saw the New Year come in this year. It turned midnight as my hubby and I had just got comfy in bed. With a quick, 'Happy New Year' we were off to sleep. It has been a few years since we have bothered to stay up, pop the champagne and sing 'Auld Lang Syne'. Part of this may be that we have children and it is not practical, but I think it is also because we have become used to the rhythmn of life. Yes, one year has gone and another has started.

But as I struggle to get used to writing 2013 on everything, I don't want to get too complacent about the blessing that each New Year can bring. A fresh start, a clean slate - this is an amazing gift of grace. No matter how 2012 has been for you, 2013 awaits full of potential, full of dreams to ‘tease our hearts’. 

The New Year is full of the unknown. It is a mystery to us all. None of us can tell what is ahead of us. We can make plans and promises to ourselves, but really it is about dealing with whatever life brings us each day. I am excited about the year ahead. I am looking forward to 'A Mandala a Month', to an overseas pilgrimage later in the year, to a year free of formal study, to living in my new house, to seeing my kids continue to grow and much, much more. 

I hope and pray that the dawn of 2013 will bring you much joy and hope for the year ahead. Happy New Year!!