Out with the old ...

From an online dictionary:
auld lang syne = (ôld lng zn, sn)
noun ...The times gone past; the good old days.
[Scots : auld, old + lang, long + syne, since.]

Well i don't know that i would call 2008 the good old days (when were the good old days? anybody know?)...but the point here is to acknowledge and honor its having been and its passing. Also to say a word of gratitude.

so i sit here on new year's eve; listening to the same old jumble on tv, staring at the computer and thinking 'how do i manage this?' then i receive a note from a friend which spurs me to write it out as i see it.

Just this one year has brought so much pain. Yet there in the middle of it is the joy.

It is as MaryElizabeth said in that note just now - the flavor of life is both sweet and sour, LOUD and gentle; laughter and sadness at the very same time - the melding of all the tastes of life.

What a menu we have from which to choose....
life and death are the same / the bitter and the sweet, the harsh and gentle have to, must, exist in juxtaposition in order for us to taste the whole meal.
My advice would be to order something from each food group or you may miss some of the texture, aroma, relish.

that is a fear i have had since i was tiny - that i might miss something.
now i understand better what it is i want NOT to miss - life's bounty.

i re-read the "momisms" post and did not laugh this time but decided to post anyway.
it all was so hysterically amusing at the time and yet soooo very heart-wrenching. bitter and sweet.

Reliving the year lead me to see the car accident again. It HIT me with those things that are still gelling and mixing. revealing many levels of realities and dimensions.
that i am alive and i am dead. that i have to have ALL the flavors and i would not want it any other way.....

So here is a mixed yet grateful goodbye to 2008 and a prayer for the bringing of renewed awareness into '09, and beyond.
Farewell to this year and all its lessons, challenges, comforts and learnings...with all its unbelievable twists and turns.
Like a good mystery novel - but now we have to put it down.

A Happy and Healthy new year to you and yours.
Love all the lessons - and stay AWAKE so you do not miss any!

PEACE