Happy New Year 2024!

We made it! Not only did we turn the page of time to another year, we also moved forward from a year where we created new memories, lived through new experiences, and hopefully grew more mature and more aware of the many, many blessings and favor that helped us through. For me, January always began with a flare of excitement around my refreshed hopes and dreams for "better." That word better stood for so many things in each of the passed years before.

Perhaps "better" was a new job. Or maybe "better" was a new house, a new car, a new wedding ring, a new fur coat, a new vacation, etc., etc.! But, since the passing of my best friend and best husband, January this year began with a flare of excitement around my hopes and dreams for a better "me." Losing Mike felt like losing half of me! You see, Mike made me a better person, a better wife, a better mother, a better friend, and a better servant of God. He cast a shadow of so many of the qualities of someone who exemplified the good of God within us. His humility, his patience, his kindness, his even-nature, his sweetness and his love for God and his family were what motivated me. He raised the bar for me without ever knowing it, and I strived to be more like him in those ways.

So, this January and all the Januarys since Mike's passing, I continue to welcome the new year with hopes and dreams for "better." I pray that I will welcome each day with a refreshed focus on being a better person than I was the day before. I hope I'm being a better friend, a better mom, a better grandma, a better listener, and a better servant to the Lord. And, I'm happy to say that each day that I begin with a focus on being a better person is a day that I have more happiness and joy. And now I look forward to each day and a new chance to "be like Mike"! ha, ha, ha pun intended.

I hope you were able to come into this January of 2024 with renewed hope and faith that you can and will make it while trying to move forward with your life since losing your dearly beloved one. Remember, you're not moving on and leaving them behind. You'll always carry those loving feelings and memories in your heart. But, it's okay to look forward, put one foot in front of the other and keep living your best life as long as God's will allows.

If you have any thoughts to share about how you face the new year and cope with the loss of your loved one as you move forward, please feel free to share them with us here on this secured, nonjudgmental, and safe community space for healing!

God's blessings and love. Happy New Year 2024!!!!