It’s Almost a New Year…..

Well, the calendar is quickly approaching the end of another year, and a decade, as well! Wow! I remember when it turned 2000, and all the hype about Y2K, and how it was going to affect everyone. And, it has affected us all in many ways. But I am not sure that they are all what was advertised…

Some of the major things that have happened in my own life in the past decade are: watching my two daughters graduate from high school, and then college, making a career change for me, having both daughters move out of the house, and seeing one get married, and another is on her way to that, as well. And that does not count all the little things that have gone on.

I sat down thinking about that today, and had to wonder…where has this year, no, this DECADE, gone? So much has taken place since 2000 that it seems a long time ago, but yet, like it was only yesterday that we were celebrating a new century. And it was full of promise, and anticipation. There have been many strides made in medicine, and there have been many hardships that we have faced as a country. Immediately, September 11 comes to mind.

There are few events in a person’s lifetime that they never forget. Though I was very young, I can remember where I was when the news of JFK’s asassination came over the radio. I remember when President Nixon resigned. I remember when president Reagan left office, and the debaucle that was the 2000 presidential election. Out of all of these important events, September 11 is theone event that every person in this nation needs to remember, and be reminded of every day. I can particularly remember what I was doing when I heard of the first plane crashing into the WTC. And then, as I rushed home from my bus route, turning on the tv just in time to see the second plane hit. To this day, I can still remember the sick feeling I got in the pit of my stomach, and the fear that I had for the safety of my family, and my country. I remember how every person in this great nation came together as one and did whatever we could to help those who had lost loved ones, and how unified we became as a nation. And, I remember the anger that I felt, too.

Now, a little over eight years later, at the end of the decade, I fear that too many people have already forgotten what happened on that clear, crisp September morning. I am not an advocate of standing still, and I know that the nation had to move forward. But, I AM an advocate of remembering what happened on that day; how we were attacked, unprovoked, by a group of people who hate us, simply because we are Americans. I still get angry about it, and I hope I never lose that passion about it. In fact, I pray that everyone will keep that passion, and recapture that unity that we had right after it happened.

Of course, that is not the only thing that happened in the past ten years, but, to me, it is probably the biggest. Like everyone, I’ve lost family members, and, well, grown 10 years older. Life goes on, and time passes. I thank God every morning when I wake up for giving me another day.

Now, here are a few things I have learned in the past ten years….
I have learned to appreciate what I have, and thank God for it. I have learned that people change, but friends are there for you, no matter what. I have learned that children grow up, and leave. But that it doesn’t mean that they have really ‘left.’ I know now that the love that I have for my husband grows stronger with each passing day, and that I am enjoying getting to know him again, with time to do things we enjoy doing together, like it was when we were first married. (BK…before kids)

As we count down the few days left in the year, I am not making resolutions for the next year. I am doing some goal setting, and some soul searching, instead. And I am planning to make some changes. Nothing major, but, just some things I have been thinking about. Rearranging priorities, I guess, would be a better way to say it. I have decided, at this point in my life, to make this my vision for the coming year….”Each day is a blank page. Write something GOOD on it!”

So, to those of you who come visit here, and read my thoughts, thank you very much. I enjoy your comments, whether you are calling me names, or disagreeing with me, or letting me know when you have enjoyed something I have written. I am just happy that you came by this way. I hope that you will continue to stop by from time to time, and that you will find something that will give you a smile, or make you angry, or whatever.

My wish for each of you for the coming year, is that God will give you blessings, and contentment, and that you will always have your needs supplied. And that you will share with someone a smile each day, because you don’t know what they are dealing with. Like I said a few sentences ago…..Each day is a blank page. Write something GOOD on it!

Happy New Year!
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