Holiday Thoughts

Well, Christmas has come and gone, and the new year is just around the corner. This is traditionally the time of year when we look back and reflect on the year gone by, and spend some time contemplating the year to come. Holidays are a time for family gatherings, food and fun. A time for giving and receiving gifts, for reconnecting with folks we have lost touch with, and most of all for remembering the birth of Christ. Christ's birth is most meaningful when viewed through the knowledge of his death. The purpose of his life; to offer us redemption, to set the example, to show us God in flesh.

This has been such a difficult year for me and for my family. The loss of Hedaia and Madelynn has been devasting. It has also given us an opportunity to know the grace, mercy and love so generously poured out by our heavenly Father, and by our family. As we look back at this year of "firsts" (first birthday without her, first Thanksgiving without her, first Christmas without her) it is impossible to imagine living through a tragedy like this without our faith and family. We truly do mourn "not as those who have no hope". We have experienced the "peace that passes all understanding". As we continue to work through our grief, we look forward to the new year, and a new beginning. Our new normal, without Hedaia in our physical presence. We rejoice, as we know she rejoices in her heavenly home. We rejoice in the knowledge that we will be reunited.

As the new year dawns, rejoice in the opportunity for a fresh start. God Bless you!