Happy New Year!
Here's to new beginnings
Since my father died on December 17, I haven’t been able to do much. That includes writing Flower Child posts, normally one of my favorite things to do.
The death of a parent is a big blow, even when the parent was 93, in extremely poor health, and ready to go. Plus, it feels like a contemplative time of year anyway, a time when we should slow down and hibernate (yes, I’ve written about that before).
Yet I find myself looking forward to the new year (despite all my worries about what it might bring). This is also a time when we humans have a bizarre tendency to think we have a chance at a fresh start. Although certain people I know (if you know, you know) like to remind me it’s an arbitrary date, January 1 feels like a reset button that allows us to start life with a clean slate. Gym membership goes up, people set resolutions and goals, magazines are cut up to create vision boards.
There’s nothing wrong with these attempts, though many of them fail (I’ve written about that before, too). There’s something beautiful about our persistent hope and belief that this year, maybe this year, things will get better. We will get better.
But that’s for tomorrow. Today, it’s still December — and, not being in the mood for parties, I’m glad I have our tickets ready for tonight:
Also since it’s still December, I’m declaring it legal to re-share one of my favorite Christmas stories — plus my two favorite Christmas songs.
The story is about the potential shamanic, psychedelic origins of Christmas; read about it here.
This short video explains more:
Far-fetched? We should probably take this theory with a grain of salt. But who knows — the psychedelic past could be one of many factors shaping the Christmas story. It’s a cool perspective, and it certainly adds magic to the season and evokes a deeper spirit of Christmas.
And now, to show I don’t hate all Christmas songs (I’ve written about that before, too — because of course I have), here are my two faves:
However you’re celebrating or not celebrating tonight, I wish you a wonderful new year filled with peace, joy, and happiness!
Happy New Year to you and Rafael!