A Very Good Year

 2023 was a year of highs and lows.

The beauty of it is that I no longer let the highs and lows define my existence. My focus is broader and allows a bigger view of the world so that the lows are buffered with beauty and the highs are tempered with gratitude.

The end of the holidays marks the leaving of my kids. They came. ALL OF THEM CAME, and I marveled at having them near, of getting to know their faces that are a bit older than the last time I saw them, of hearing their voices with new maturity, of taking pleasure as they interact and start to realize that each of them holds memories of each other that are precious. I felt like I was in a bubble of pure wonder. 

What I had to offer was a safer version of me, a more predictable, less manipulative human. I’m not really afraid anymore. Fear is not in the driver seat.

I have loved this visit and I will love when it gets back to normal. I am a creature of habit. Changing it up has been fabulous but my body will be more content when we get back on track even as my heart stays right here soaking up the last bit of the visit.

Wishing you all the happiest, healthiest New Year 💖

Comments

  1. PixieDecember 30, 2023 at 9:52 AM

    Sounds like a wonderful visit. Have a lovely new year.

    ReplyDelete
  2. JeanieDecember 30, 2023 at 12:36 PM

    I am so thrilled your whole tribe was there. That's the best gift of all!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Debra She Who SeeksDecember 30, 2023 at 12:55 PM

    How wonderful to have had all your kids home for the holidays! Wishing everyone a wonderful 2024!

    ReplyDelete
  4. MargaretDecember 30, 2023 at 6:03 PM

    I know what you mean about the joy of having everyone together for a holiday but also the relief of going back to a normal routine.

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousDecember 31, 2023 at 7:13 AM

    What a beautiful gathering of love you had there. The most wonderful gifts of the season. Happy New Year! (NewRobin13)

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

What do you have to say about that?

Popular posts from this blog

Private Eye

Image
We pass by the house frequently since it sits on a busy thoroughfare. We know to look every time we pass and guess what will we see. Will it be the two Dalmatians, sitting on the couch that backs up to the giant panel window, waiting for their human to come home? Or will it be their human, sitting slightly to the right of middle (allowing for a better view of the giant mounted tv across the room) of the said couch. They are never there at the same time. It’s one or the other. One sleepless night, when my body was willing but my brain was not, I did a little sleuthing. It’s amazing what you can find out about a complete stranger.   His name is Gary and, from what I can tell, he’s never been married. He has worked his way up in a air duct company. He’s now the senior VP but it’s a small company and he still goes out on jobs, judging from  the reviews on Yelp. I know he has two siblings and that their father passed away in 2018. His memorial was held in a Buddhist temple and Gary sr. soun
Read more

Let's Be Perfectly Clear

I would like your input on this letter I am considering sending out. Darryl, I once considered you, if not a friend, a very friendly acquaintance. Our daughters are the same age. I am sure that your daughter is as special to you as mine is to me. McKenna is 21 years old and starting out her life with some tough situations. SHE IS NOT AN OBJECT. She is a person who has her ups and downs, her struggles and triumphs. She has, in the past year, completely alone, had to make scary medical decisions for her mentally ill, addicted father. She has had to watch as the man who was an amazing father slowly turn into a shell of a man who has little to give and much to take. Whether purposefully or accidentally, you have added to her already difficult year. I wonder…would you appreciate my ex-husband leering and making inappropriate comments to your daughter over the course of a long evening? Think about that for a moment!  What were you hoping to achieve with your behavior? Whether
Read more

Go!

Image
 Vai. E, se der medo, vai con medo mesmo. When one is raised in an angry family, it’s not enough to say I don’t want to be angry. You must learn how to do it differently. That’s no easy task. If judgment and self hatred became a way of life, a new way to live has to be taught. There are many ways to do it. Reading, writing, sharing, practicing all help the change. Counseling, psychoanalysis, religion, meditation, gratitude, have the ability to transform but I needed to see it in action, it needed to be more tangible, visual, accessible. I needed to understand the possibilities. There is a YouTube channel that I watch over and over again in order to absorb how to live more fully, more open and from the heart. One of the first episodes that I stumbled on is this…. The channel is Reflections of Life and through it we get to meet people who are doing life a little differently, often more soul based. People who are living life, healing wounds and finding what is truly important.  It can be
Read more