I’ll be with my sons for the next week, so I probably won’t be writing many entries while they’re here. I haven’t seen them since August, and even though we talk four to five nights a week, there’s nothing like holding them, hearing their laughter in person, and playing for hours on end. My creative energy needs the rejuvenation they give me. Anyone who knows me knows how much my boys mean to me and how difficult this time of year is without them.
I don’t make New Year’s resolutions; in my experience, they rarely work and often solidify bad habits even more than before the attempt to change for the sake of a new year. Instead, I prefer to reflect on what was positive in the previous year that I can build upon and what was negative that I can eliminate. This year, I have a lot of positive, the most notable of which is my affiliation with Seventh Star Press. 2012 is going to be a great year for The Brotherhood of Dwarves series. I also made great progress on the farm, and even though that project has had to be put on hold for now, I still have a lot of confidence that we can get it off the ground.
The negative I’ll keep personal, but I learned a lot of valuable lessons this past year. I will take from those lessons and grow as a person. I’ll learn to appreciate and be more grateful for my blessings, and I’ll try harder to let go of the past and move forward into a better, healthier tomorrow.
Happy early New Year’s to all my family, friends, and readers. May 2012 be a great year for you and yours.
Last night, Mari took me to a birthday party for the father of a good friend of hers. The man, who turned 90, immigrated from Spain to Cuba in his early 20’s and, then, fled Castro’s dictatorship at 45. At 90, he is more vibrant, more full of life, and more full of joy than most people I’ve encountered, despite having experienced so much turmoil and difficulty in his lifetime, and his party was a celebration of Spanish heritage and Cuban culture. The teenagers danced traditional dances, and everyone sang Spanish songs. His daughter-in-law told jokes, and he relished the youth and energy, smiling all night. In short, it was a wonderful experience.
Big Owl's Tree 