We were privileged to celebrate the New Year with the children at the nearby Grace Home, run by our good friends at Compassio.
They had Mukake, Thai BBQ, and movies and sugar so all the kids had a lot of fun. (Some of the sugar was our fault because we had a giant Christmas party the night before and people brought so many khanome (Thai for snacks) and bottles of sweet drinks that we had a huge surplus. The New Year’s party was a perfect chance to get it out of my house so Bam Bam would stop yelling like a sugar addict, “But I want nacks mama, I want them.”)
It was really fun.
My feed is full of New Years Wishes and resolutions. There’s a lot of hope for a happy, healthy and prosperous year to come, and to stay safe while partying. There were a lot of resolutions as well. A lot of them beautiful and difficult to fulfill, but possible.
It got me thinking about what I wish for the people I love, for you reading this, for me, and my family in this coming year.
I pray for you…
That you choose kindness whenever possible, and extend yourself to provide comfort for at least one other person this year.
That you have hope in the face of the darkness yet in the world, that would cause us to despair.
That you hold a candle of love and kindness up in that night and see how quickly it is dispelled when you do.
That you will be brave, and try something hard that will make you stronger.
That you have the courage to forgive someone who hurt you, and set yourself free from the prison of bitterness you have been keeping yourself in.
That you realize how powerful you really are.
That you know how deeply you yourself are loved.
That you grow in strength, and knowledge, and character.
and…
That you have some stories worth telling at the end of it.