New Year’s Eve! We made it! The last celebration of 2022 before it’s over. Our planned celebration got derailed when half the family came down with head colds over Christmas. Only two of us are still standing here on the west side, and we’re not interested in partying with “Snotty”, “Coughing”, and “Sneezy”. Oh well, I have never been big on staying up until midnight to make sure the new year makes it here. What’s the plan if it doesn’t? Every time I have gone to bed before the official end of the year, the New Year has been there waiting for me in the morning. Whew! Who knew it could find its way without the drunken reveling of civilization to usher it in? Remember the eve of 2000, and the quivering fear of Y2K? That midnight I was awake, but it was a little anti-climatic as millenniums go. I was hoping for a little something more, but considering what “they” were predicting, I should be happy it turned out to be a bust.
Tonight my husband, Kim, and I will watch the sunset for the last time in 2022 from our lanai, overlooking the pond. In the morning, we will watch the sunrise on the first day of 2023 from the same place. We talked about going to the beach, but let’s face it, I’m lazy! Naples is still working on cleaning up the mess Hurricane Ian made, and now the beaches have limited access. Limited access translates to limited parking. With the number of holiday visitors in town, plus snowbirds, and in general how many people flock to the beach to watch the sunset on any given day, parking most likely will be challenging. I’m sure we could find something several blocks away, and yes I could walk, but I’m just not that invested.
I am usually up before the sun, so watching the sunrise is not a problem, but from the beach means I have to get dressed! Before coffee?! That doesn’t even sound like me! Besides, the beach faces west. We’d need to turn our backs to the water to see the sunrise, so what’s the point?! I can see a perfectly good sunrise from my lanai, in my pajamas if I want, and yes I want! Tonight I will raise a glass of wine to toast the sun for its diligence to duty this past year, and a cup of coffee in the morning to welcome the sun, encouraging it to show the same attentiveness in the new year. Easy peasy!
Here we are, riding the downhill side of 2022, about to land feet first into 2023. We have high hopes as we stand poised, at the stroke of midnight, to toss the 2022 calendar in the trash and pin up 2023. Nice clean squares waiting to be filled in with events, important dates to celebrate, and things to look forward to before it gets cluttered with appointments, bill reminders, and all the other things you need to put on the calendar so you don’t forget responsibilities. Come next December this pristine calendar, that holds so much hope for better days to come than those left behind, will look much like the one we toss out tonight. Battered, held together with paperclips, little squares filled with scribbles of places we needed to be, birthdays, anniversaries, funerals, bills, repairmen, first day of …, last day of…., and my favorite, vacations. But, there will be a big difference between the calendars of 2022 and 2023. The next 365 days will be like no others that have come before, because we haven’t lived them yet. Each one is new, and though in many ways they may be similar, like a snowflake they are not the same.
Tonight, however you choose to celebrate the coming of 2023, get ready to step into your future. Whatever it will be for you, my wish is that you will have everything you need to make it a memorable year; laughter, love, strength, courage, hopes, and dreams. God bless and Happy New Year!
