The week between Christmas and New Year is always a pleasant one for me. I am filled with such joy over Christmas celebrations, visits, and video and voice calls, and equal amounts of optimism and anticipation for new beginnings.

Despite my traditionally early start to the Christmas season, it has passed so quickly once again. My mother was a traditionalist with a love of Christmas so, when I was young, our decorations would stay up until January 6th, the fest of the Epiphany. I enjoy that same practice, as much for the observance of the Epiphany as the extra few days of Christmas coziness (I personally don’t feel the Epiphany and Christmas decorations are mutually exclusive, but that is a discussion for another post!). So, as the events of this Christmas season 2023 wind down and I’m left to reflect on my feelings of gratitude for the year that has passed, I am gently turning my attention to the practical reality of moving into 2024 with a spirit of optimism, delight, and determination, ready to embrace the opportunities awaiting in the new year.

Looking back on 2023 is a walk down an amazing Memory Lane. While technically still 2022, Christmas last year was spent in Ontario with my older children and my grandchildren. Sadly, a severe ice storm resulted in the cancellation of the Christmas worship service with my community that I was so looking forward to and that I do still miss so much. However, we gathered together for a lively celebration and gift exchange at home. Then I rang in 2023 in Nova Scotia with my younger daughters – the one I gave birth to and the one I adopted. There were visits with extended family and friends here in Nova Scotia, phone and video calls, a ‘business meeting’ or two with my dear cousins on the farm, sea glass hunting on the beach, polar bear toe-dips in the ocean and cozy evening tucked inside with the woodfire and Christmas movies. And that’s how I kicked off another amazing year – 2023!

Early spring was filled with plans to travel out west for my grandson’s graduation. I love the family times when we all travel together. We pile onto planes, into rental cars and into hotel rooms. Over the years, I have had the blessing of working as a consultant in various cities across Canada and Europe and, as a result, I’ve been able to combine a few business trips with vacation time with the kids and grandkids. This past year it wasn’t a business-pleasure trip combo but a huge celebration for my grandson who graduated from high-school in Wilcox, Saskatchewan. Once again, we piled on the planes – my granddaughter, my youngest and myself from Halifax, and my son and oldest daughter from Toronto and we met up with my grandson in Regina. It was another very special time together.

COVID has changed the way I work and resulted in basically exclusive remote work. Thus my ability to work from the shores of the Atlantic ocean in Nova Scotia, which is a ‘vacation’ in itself. Now, the visitors come to me! One of the things my daughter says, ‘it’s the gift of living where people like to vacation’. And once we were back home from Saskatchewan, the company came. It started with young people who have been friends of ours for years, since my youngest was first in elementary school to be exact. It was a bit of a whirlwind trip, but they are young and can handle that pace. So I continued to work and made sure they all were fed and enjoyed the amenities of home to make their trip more comfortable. The beautiful thing about entertaining company here is that the sights are so fantastic that we never get tired of being tour guides. We continue to enjoy the quaint seaside towns, the historical sights and museums, the ghost tours (there are a LOT!!), the beaches, the whales and seals, and the food and the food and the food!

My eldest and her partner came down next and relaxed a little more than the first group. Both are hikers so they took advantage of the countryside, beaches and forests, and our dogs got plenty of additional outings – managing to avoid the porcupines the one is so desperate to make friends with, thank goodness! My son and grandchildren wrapped up the summer with an extended stay, again filled with good food, lots of fun and some pretty physical work. The grounds of the old property were assessed and some trees close to the house were taken down as they were deemed unhealthy and too close for comfort in this area prone to gales and the effects of hurricanes. The house was gutted, assessed, and shored up with the help of family and an old (literally and figuratively) friend of my father-in-law, then we closed the house up for winter. We had a few phenomenal bonfires – luckily the weather cooperated and allowed for the ministry to give us the ‘all clear’ at just the perfect timing.

And then, just like that, the company was gone. My youngest found herself an apartment in Halifax so she can meet the requirement of Dalhousie University that she complete her 4th year studies in person on campus. I miss her terribly as she is a lively spirit. The other daughter found herself a fulltime job in the field she is still studying for. So the fall arrived, the house was quiet, and I was able to transition a consulting gig at a company I really, really like. It was a great year….happy, healthy, fun-filled, and eventful (old houses hold hidden treasures in those old walls and floorboards – it’s amazing what is uncovered when you take down walls and pick up flooring – more on that also for another post). Ultimately, I am so grateful.

So, here we are…the final day of 2023. Having reflected with gratitude, it is exciting to look forward to 2024. Long gone are the days of ‘resolutions’ to make dramatic changes in the new year as I have adopted a mindset that is certainly more relaxed, and mellow. Being much more contended with myself and my life, I am more inclined to make gentle changes.

I intend to work a bit less. Being on the east coast these days, my workday starts earlier than any of my peers. I do like the extra hour because it is quiet in the virtual office. The problem is often felt at the other end of the day. Again, because I’m on the east coast, some of my peers are only mid-afternoon when I’m setting the table for supper. So when I say I intend to work less, it will just mean taking a little more time for myself in the morning – getting all the little things that need to be done when one lives in the country accomplished in a more relaxed way rather than rushing to get online. I will also be a little more determined to end my day at a time that works for me. Of course, I will need to accommodate some later afternoon meetings but I may start declining the early evening ones!

I will arrange more of those morning ‘business meetings’ with my cousins on the farm that I mentioned above and join my church back in Kitchener in fellowship over video conference in the evening.

I will strive to enjoy what I have recognized to be my true luxuries in life – slower mornings, getting lost in my books, more time in nature (which is really so simple to achieve and wonderful here), being with friends and family, enjoying beautiful music, enjoying colourful sunsets, enjoying the freedom to choose, and the opportunity to do it all again!

I will be more aware and openly grateful for my life, my good health, my rich and close circle of family and friends, and a career I still enjoy as much as the people I share that career with. And I will reach out more to let people know I am thinking of them and appreciate their presence in the my life.

And I will accept the responsibility to model a more restful and peaceful way of living for those I connect with.

So, on that note, thank you to all who have enriched my life in 2023. May your 2024 be filled with peace, love and all the happiness your heart can hold!

Enjoy!