The Year That Was

Here we are... looking out over a vast space with no idea what is going to transpire in the next twelve months. Every year is like that.

I guess you could also say it's like being handed an unopened gift, but one that can only be examined one little bit at a time. No tearing and ripping into it.  Not until the end of the year are we able to look back and give an opinion on the year that was.

The year that was...
As I was journalling one day, I wrote an entry called Life and Death in 2017. Because it really was the year of life and death. Literally and figuratively. To sum it up,  it was a VERY HARD YEAR. And yet, it held some of the biggest joys of my life, too. Life is like that.

Truth be told, when it's hard, we really find out what we really believe and where we really put our trust and hope. We find out how important our community is. We are thankful for little things. We keep telling ourselves the truth. We take less for granted and we hold more tightly to things we value (and they're not really usually things). We know how fleeting life is. We only have today. Who knows what tomorrow brings?

My 'mantra' for 2017 was "Always, we begin again". It was so apt for me. I'm going to take that into 2018 as well, because I think it's a life saver. We can't look back and dwell on regrets or missteps. Yes, we can learn, but in the end, we begin again. Take what we've learned and move ahead. Begin again.

The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23

Next post: One Word 2018